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Camila was bone tired. In fact, she had to put effort into doing her makeup this time because the bags under her eyes were screaming they were designer. Why was the doctor so exhausted? Simple. That filthy rate, Jamie's younger brother, managed to contact her once more. After she had even went and reassured her husband that things would be fine.[break][break]

She didn't need this on her plate too. She had her hands full with the aftermath from the conflict in Ultra Deep Sea and her clinic was in the middle of a merge with a larger facility. Why? Because doctors and nurses were in demand around here considering the shenanigans that went on in this region. [break][break]

This meant not only did Camila have to manage her clinic branch near home but she was also constantly traveling around the region to assist with other hospitals and clinics of the like. Wherever her services were need, and her services were required often. Just those two things alone were enough to drive her up a wall and now she needed to deal with her stalker, Josiah.[break][break]

It soured her entire mood and this was supposed to be a nice relaxing family get away. She loved her beach trip tradition with her family. Being on the beach would always relax her. Hearing the ocean waves, smelling the salty sea, feeling the sand on her skin. Nothing rejuvenated her like being near the ocean. But for once it seemed like even that wasn't helping her.[break][break]

Her husband's voice was what managed to drag her away from her inner turmoil's. "Hm? Oh, um. Swablu Shave Ice sounds nice, thank you hun." She said as she flashed him a smile.

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Nikolaj had noticed his wife's fatigue recently and assumed her travels had been taking quite a lot out of her. He'd hoped, too, that the beach trip would be a nice respite from the demands of her work.[break][break]

Turning to the vendor, he placed his order. "One Swablu shaved ice, one pinap-aguav shaved ice, and…" He read the sign again to make sure saskia volosenkova's favorite was also on the list. "One pecha berry shaved ice."[break][break]

The treats and money exchanged hands. Nikolaj gave Camila her snow cone and a small, plastic spoon. Then they stepped aside so the next customer could order.[break][break]

The combined flavors of the pinap berry and aguav berry tasted sweet on Nikolaj's tongue. He didn't usually eat sweets but made an exception every year for their family beach trip.[break][break]

"Yours good, Cami?" he asked his wife as they started walking back to their beach spot.

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As soon as Kolya handed her the shaved ice she ordered and her spoon, she quickly scooped up some of the sugary goodness and popped it into her mouth. "Mmm," she hummed. The sugary goodness served to momentarily distract her from her troubles at least. Her hunch had been right that this flavor would be good. Especially on a hot day like this one, it was rather refreshing than sickly sweet. [break][break]

"Yours good, Cami?" Kolya asked her and steel blue hues turned to meet him. "Mhm, you wanna have a taste?" she asked with a smile as she scooped some for him and held out her spoon. "Say 'ah'" she said with a happy grin, fully intent of feeding her husband some of her sweet treat. [break][break]

If Kolya took a bite she'd eagerly watch his expression before asking, "Is it good?" She was well aware that he didn't exactly enjoy sweets, the exact opposite of her. Cami actually had to struggle to keep her sweet tooth in check, otherwise she'd ruin her diet with sugary treats. Then that could lead to a slew of medical complications and she just didn't want to go down that rabbit hole. [break][break]

"Thank you, by the way. I don't think I said so earlier." she said before taking another bite of her shaved ice. The 'thank you' wasn't just for the treat he bought for her, but that he'd pushed her to go on this little vacation trip. Despite this being tradition, this year, with everything going on she had half a mind to work through everything and send Kolya and Saskia on without her. [break][break]

After all, it didn't seem right to be enjoying herself with there were still outside forces that threatened the peace of her family. But she was always reminded how she didn't want her family to be concerned. If she'd told them the truth then it would only serve to create problems in their day-to-day lives. That wasn't fair to them. No. No matter how tired Cami was, she was sure she was strong enough to handle this on her own.

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"Sure," Nikolaj said when Camila offered a taste of her shaved ice. He accepted the spoonful she held out, allowing his wife to feed him as if they were still young lovers.[break][break]

Immediately, he made a face. Her choice of flavor was way too sweet for him.[break][break]

"It's good," he said, though he coughed. "Very sweet, though. I don't know how you can eat so much sugar, Cami."[break][break]

Back at their beach blanket, Nikolaj carefully put Saskia's snack in the drink holder of her chair. The girl was playing with her Pokémon some distance away, leaving her parents to continue chatting by themselves.[break][break]

Nikolaj eased into his own chair. "You don't have to thank me," he said to Camila. "I know you would've regretted not coming with Sasky and me. And you need it, you know? You can't work all the time, baby girl."[break][break]

Little did he know of her true anxieties.

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Cami chuckled at her husband's response to her treat. It was as she expected, it was still too sweet for him, even if she thought it was mild in comparison to her own tastes. Still, Kolya tried to put on a brave face for her, it was cute. Once they had made it to their beach blankets Cami sighed in relief. Happy to be back under the shade of their little beach umbrellas. [break][break]

"You don't have to thank me," Kolya responded to Cami's gratitude as he eased into his own chair. Meanwhile Cami opted for laying across her beach towel. "I know you would've regretted not coming with Sasky and me. And you need it, you know? You can't work all the time, baby girl." Nikolaj was right. Under normal circumstances she wouldn't have even attempted to handle all of this on her own anymore. [break][break]

She'd long since learned how to take a break. At least, for her standards. She still worked extremely hard, a firm believer in doing nothing half-assed. But this pickle that she had gotten her family into was different. She had to work tirelessly so that they could sleep well at night, safe and sound. But it's not like she could just say that. [break][break]

"Ugh, I know but," she said with a groan as she shoved another spoonful for sugary goodness into her mouth. "It just feels never-ending. The amount of work I mean. I finish one thing and something else pops up. If I don't get it under control it'll swallow me alive." she said with a dramatic huff. "I don't even want to think about what's waiting for me back at the office."[break][break]

Cami flashed a pitiful look at her husband as she crawled over to gently lean her head against his lap. "I'll get gray hair at the rate I'm going."

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Nikolaj frowned. "Can't you hire someone to help out? Another doctor, I mean. Not an assistant."[break][break]

Even after all these years, he didn't understand the intricacies of the medical profession. He was a simple man who knew how to build things with his hands and address basic injuries. The bureaucracy of Camila's field was totally incomprehensible to him.[break][break]

"Is it a money issue?" he asked, worried that was the case. Between her clinic, his business, and paychecks through Ranger work, they made enough to get by. But it seemed everything cost more these days.

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At the question of if she could hire hire someone she sighed. Realistically, hiring someone for her normal work would work for sure. But it would only free up a fraction of her time. "That's only a temporary fix." Cami explained as she looked up at Kolya from his lap. "Is it a money issue?" her husband asked.[break][break]

"What? No,no." Now Cami felt bad. She hopped up from where she was leaning against Kolya and instead sat in his lap, cupping his face between her hands. "Don't think like that. I don't want you to think you have to work more or anything." she was afraid he might tire himself out just like her. "The extra doctor or two might be able to free up my hands around the clinic but that won't be enough."[break][break]

She ran her fingers through her hair. "Since our clinic is merging with the union, it means extra work. It doesn't help that there's a shortage of healthcare professionals too. So when its all hands on deck, I have to answer the call, usually putting on ridiculous shifts at the hospital instead of the clinic."[break][break]

Cami was already tired thinking about it. "I'm the only one that can do that work unfortunately." she said as she offered him a small smile. She didn't like telling half truth's like this. Especially when Nikolaj was clearly concerned. It made her feel guilty. "I'm sure once everything is squared away with the merger then half of my workload will be eliminated." she said as she nuzzled closer to her husband. [break][break]

"I just gotta hang on a little while longer." That's right. She'd solve this problem soon and everything would go back to normal in no time.

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Nikolaj was scooping more of his snack into his mouth when Camila crawled into his lap. He quickly placed an arm around her to hold her steady.[break][break]

Her explanation made sense, at least from his ignorant perspective. This merger was good in the long run, but at present, all he could see was how busy it made his wife. But when she cupped his face, he could feel the tension draining from his body a little.[break][break]

"All right," he said, his gruff tone suggesting he still didn't like it, even if he had to accept it. "How much longer is it going to take? A few more weeks, or what?"

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She actively watched as her husband relented under her touch. She was relieved he trusted her so but it was such a bittersweet feeling. But she knew she would make this choice every time if it meant she could protect her family. She sighed softly at the follow up question. "That...I'm not sure of."[break][break]

Like everything else she had been saying, this too was a half truth. "Dealing with a corporation always has it's ups and downs. They can be speedy with their responses one week and then leave you rotting for the next two to three." she quipped. "Ideally though I should see some progress month to month and a half."[break][break]

Cami leaned in a planted a gently kiss against Kolya's cheek. "But I'll try to get some help so that I can rest too. I don't want to worry you." she said with an affectionate smile. "How's that sound?"

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Camila only continued to make sense, so there was nothing Nikolaj could do except nod his head and accept the reality of their situation. But at least she seemed amenable to looking for help. If it could be in the form of another doctor, then all the better.[break][break]

"That sounds good. As good as it will get," he said.[break][break]

Then he patted her hip, a signal for her to rise from his lap.[break][break]

"Let me get Sasky her snowcone before it melts away. You sit here and look cute for me, all right?" He grinned at last and returned Camila's kiss on the cheek before helping her stand up.[break][break]

And for the rest of their beach trip, Nikolaj didn't worry about his wife's work. He trusted her, after all.

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