The silence after the handoff feels heavier than the code

It’s not the alarms that shake me anymore. It’s the quiet right after shift change—the way the room holds its breath, like it knows something’s being passed between hands that aren’t quite ready to let go. I’ve started noticing how the beeps slow down just enough to make space for the weight of what wasn’t said. Last night, I stood in the doorway for three minutes, just listening to the rhythm of someone else’s breathing through the IV pump. Not mine. Not theirs. Just… there. Like a prayer without words.