Homophobia at the Hospital

Was seemingly non-existent this time around. During check-in I didn’t notice much because I was more focused on getting Lynn properly documented and in the chute. I sat with Lynn during as much of the pre-operative preparation as I could. He was pretty stoned from the medication and I wanted to make sure all of the important information was communicated without error.
But during surgery I had moment to pause and think.
When they wheeled Lynn away for the final prep and surgery I went looking for the waiting room. I had errands to run and I knew when he should be waking up and all I really wanted to do was see if there were any good magazines. I stopped for a moment when I stepped into the waiting room. I couldn’t remember when was the last time I was there but nothing had changed, well, the magazines were fresh. The elderly volunteer keeping track of waiting family members asked for my name and the patients name and then “Are you Family?” Now I’ve gotten used to this question and I don’t stumble when I need to tell this lie and I said “Yes.”
And she said “Husband?”
For the first time in a long time I had to stop and think before I could answer with a simple “Yes.”