'Filler' chapter so you know, something important to the plot, that might not seem like it.
See you, if all goes well, on Wednesday.
Enjoy.
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Approximately a minute after knocking at Meemaw's house. Diane opened the door, dressed in a long white buttoned shirt tucked into a pair of jeans, holding a pair of earrings in her hand. Furrowing her brow for a second, apparently surprised to see me. "You're early" she said while trying to put the earring in her ear.
Noticing she couldn't fix the earring, I extended my hand offering without saying a word. "We didn't agree on a time" I clarified as I received the earrings.
Unfocusing her eyes to think for literally half a second. "You're right" Diane declared, "we didn't agree on a time" she smiled, "we still have half an hour to make it to the reservation though."
Gently holding her chin, I adjusted her head to get a better angle to the light. "Reservation where?" I asked while moving a few strands of hair out of the way.
Without much difficulty I fastened the first of the earrings in her ear, immediately moving on to the next one, once again carefully guiding her head.
The gentle movement seemed to relax Diane enough at least for her to answer in a slightly lethargic tone. "Mandela told me it's the best restaurant in Medford" she said.
Raising my eyebrows I smiled amused. "Mandela huh" I murmured, continuing my guidance of Diane's head to have access to her other ear.
It wasn't that I didn't trust my friend's recommendation, it was just that... I didn't trust her recommendation.
Repeating the same process as with the first ear, I moved the loose strands of hair left after tilting her head and, keeping my pulse perfectly steady, fastened the second earring.
"Done" I said tapping her earlobe gently and, unable to help myself, I ran my thumb along the outline of her jaw until reaching under her chin lifting her face so she'd be facing me, "you look beautiful by the way" I declared seriously.
Staring at me with her mouth half open. "Thank you" Diane murmured, her voice barely audible while she leaned toward me.
Exhaling in amazement, I leaned in giving her a chaste and quick kiss.
When we pulled apart Diane kept her eyes closed for one more second, clearly enjoying the moment. When she opened them again, embarrassed she cleared her throat, surely because of how attentively I was watching her, and with a small happy smile on her face. "And you look so handsome too" she declared softly.
Winking. "I know" I joked with exaggerated arrogance, making Diane huff. "So, do we get going?" I asked. I still didn't know where we were going, and therefore how long it would take us to get to the place.
Furrowing her brow, surely calculating in her head. "Sure" Diane shrugged, "if there's no traffic and we get at least half of the lights in green, we'll be there fifteen minutes early. If our table isn't ready we can always wait" she added easily.
"Okay" I nodded, "do you have everything you need?" I asked noticing she wasn't carrying her bag.
Checking her clothes and surely mentally reviewing what she had. "No, I'm just going to grab my things quickly" she answered.
"Including my gift" I asked raising my eyebrows.
Turning immediately, in a poor attempt to hide her reaction from me. "Yes" she answered in a high pitched tone, walking quickly into the house.
Snorting in disbelief, I went down the steps of Meemaw's porch stopping only a few steps away from the house. As fast as she disappeared, Diane came back carrying her purse.
On the way to my car, on the other side of the street. Diane, as always, told me about her day at the university and all the work she had done for her research and, of course when the question came, without wanting to leave Diane out of my day. I narrated, without much detail my day, including part of what happened at the hospital.
Inside the car, waiting a couple of minutes for the engine to warm up again. "So basically that, I made a dumb mistake."
Holding my hand on my leg. "I'm sorry" Diane said subdued.
It was not at all my intention to ruin the mood of Diane's plans.
Shaking my head quickly. "I'm okay now" I assured her, and it was partially a small lie. I still had my mistake on my mind, but I was slowly accepting and processing it. It wasn't enough to distract me from Diane.
Smiling relieved. "Look on the bright side, nobody died" she declared completely unconcerned.
Snorting in surprise, I laughed raising my eyebrows. "Yeah" I murmured shaking my head, "at least nobody's dead" I added stiffly.
Of course completely unaware of how blunt her comment had been. "What?" she asked confused.
Smiling widely. "Nothing" I answered, squeezing her hand before letting go to start driving.
Having Diane in the car was the contemporary equivalent of having a digital navigation system, with her memory and her attention to detail, I was sure that at some point she'd learned a map of Medford maybe even of Texas or the entire United States, streets and highways included.
"In two miles you're going to turn right and we're going to continue on Sunny Drive for half a mile more" Diane pointed out to me.
Even though I didn't have Diane's memory, having driven around the whole town at least a couple of times, gave me an idea of where we were headed.
Turning onto the last street Diane pointed out to me, I arrived in front of a Mexican restaurant so lit up with different colored lights that it would possibly be visible from space.
Smiling at Diane. "The best restaurant in Medford" I said parking my car on my own.
Even though it could seem like a sarcastic or ironic comment, knowing that it surely wasn't by far the best restaurant in town. The idea of eating Mexican food didn't bother me at all.
Leaning forward to see better through the windshield. "Looks fun" Diane commented.
"I'm sure it is" I said getting out of the car.
Together with Diane we walked into the restaurant, immediately hearing regional music, dozens of different conversations and the clatter of cutlery against plates.
Attentively smelling the delicious aroma of Mexican food. "I've never had Mexican food" Diane said while we waited for someone to seat us.
"Really?" I asked surprised.
Having lived in Los Angeles, after all the shifts as a paramedic my daily meals were usually takeout from Thai or Chinese places near my house, but often from Mexican places too.
"Yeah, I'm a lot more used to Mediterranean food, Asian, English obviously because of mom and Texan now of course" Diane explained thinking for a moment, "I really doubt I've ever had food from the south of the country, nothing from Central America or South America."
Embarrassed as much as impressed since, now it was me who had never tried even half of those cuisines, well, I had already eaten at a French restaurant and at an Italian one, that counted.
"Well Mexican food is really good" I said amused by my own embarrassment.
It was silly to compare the amount of culture Diane had who, obviously despite not caring to show it, came from a very well off family, with mine.
At that moment, a waitress about our age, wearing a long apron with the restaurant's logo printed on the front, arrived in front of us. "Sorry, would you like a table?" she asked looking at me sideways with obvious recognition.
Probably from school, I deduced.
"Yes, we have a reservation under the name Diane Adler" Diane answered, completely getting the waitress's attention.
Judging by the reaction on the girl's face, I doubted the restaurant took reservations outside of special dates, like Cinco de Mayo or something similar. "Ah, sure" she murmured turning her attention into the restaurant.
Even though the place wasn't empty at all, there were plenty of available tables, enough in fact that a reservation shouldn't matter.
Fortunately the girl knew how to do her job well. Turning her attention back to us, with a professional smile on her face, extending her arm she invited us in. "Please follow me" she said walking toward one of the sides of the restaurant, "your waiter will be with you in a moment" pointing at the table, letting me help Diane with her chair, the girl waited a moment before leaving a couple of menus on the table, "enjoy" she added before leaving with our thanks.
Opening her menu immediately, Diane started reading. "Oh, this sounds good" she pointed at a spot on the pages, "enchiladas" she said in a very strong attempt at Spanish, "have you had them?" she asked me.
Relieved, since I actually had eaten them before, I nodded.
The atmosphere and the food at the restaurant left nothing to be desired, the waiters were extremely attentive and the music, even though it was quite loud, let Diane and I talk comfortably.
Drinking the last sip of my drink I set my glass next to the plate ready for the waiters to be able to take it without trouble. "That was good" I said to Diane who for some reason was distracted looking around the restaurant.
Confused I looked in the same direction Diane was looking without finding anything that told me what was happening. Appearing behind us the waiter arrived keeping his friendly smile. "Was everything good?" he asked clearing the table.
Sharing a meaningful look with the waiter. "It was great thank you" Diane answered hurriedly.
Nodding, the waiter quickly finished clearing the table before walking away again.
Replaying the interaction between the waiter and Diane in my head, many scenarios crossed my mind until suddenly it hit me.
No.
Turning my attention back to the direction Diane had been looking at before, before I could say anything, the music changed and a group of restaurant workers came out carrying a slice of cake with a candle.
"Happy birthday to you" they sang all together.
Exhaling heavily I turned my attention back to Diane, who along with the workers was singing smiling widely, of course, proud of having surprised me.
Shaking my head amused I stared at Diane as they surrounded our table and the cake appeared in front of me, when the song finally ended amid applause I blew out the candle and silently thanked the people around me, including people at other tables.
"I didn't know if they were actually going to do it" Diane confessed to me, "I talked about it with whoever I talked to on the phone to make the reservation" she explained excitedly, "Mandela told me it was mandatory at a birthday dinner."
Of course.
With dinner over and the bill paid, a bill Diane paid, despite my insistent attempts to pay it. We left the restaurant into the autumn night weather of Texas.
Diane immediately stopped, feeling the cold air unlike inside the place and I, who was already expecting that since she left her house without a jacket or sweater, put my blazer on her shoulders.
While we walked slowly to my car. "Did you like it?" Diane asked me.
"Oh yeah" I answered immediately, "thank you" I added smiling at Diane.
"I'm glad" she murmured relieved.
"It was a great gift" I declared knowing full well it surely wasn't my only gift.
Again, I was only doing it to see Diane's reaction.
Getting what I wanted. "Oh" Diane stopped abruptly, shaking her head. "This wasn't your gift" she assured me, "I mean, it's part of it" she added, "but it's not your gift" and breaking my theory to pieces she started searching in her purse.
I didn't have time to react when Diane pulled a small but elongated box out of her purse.
"Here" she said placing it in my hands.
Holding the box I sank completely into my thoughts, had I made a mistake again reading Diane?
I was almost completely sure my gift wasn't something bought.
Opening the box I found a fairly elegant pen and, surely extremely expensive for what it did.
"You don't like it?" Diane asked worried.
Correcting my expression that without meaning to showed how I felt about having failed in my reading. "No, it's great, I never had one of these" I said taking the pen out of the box, it was quite a bit heavier than one would imagine.
Nodding relieved. "I didn't know what to get you" she admitted.
"Well, this is perfect" I assured her pulling her into a hug.
I didn't actually need an elegant pen, I was completely sure that with a pen worth a few cents I could do the same thing. But, what mattered was the gesture, Diane had bought it for me.
Holding my torso tightly. "I'm glad you like it" she admitted, "but" she pulled back a little, just enough to be able to look me in the eyes, "the rest of the gift is in my dorm room at the university" she declared in a whisper immediately avoiding my eyes.
Feeling for a second weakness in my knees, which I controlled immediately, I cleared my throat while Diane pressed herself against me again.
After all, I hadn't been wrong.
The next day, after an excellent day of school in which Kat and Mandela looked at me like they knew something no one else did, especially the latter. I drove to the hospital making all my good mood vanish.
Sighing still inside my car I mentally prepared myself for whatever might happen.
The reception, unlike the day before, was completely empty. Empty of course except for the desk where the nurses were working diligently.
Looking surprised to see me. "PJ" Mandy greeted me, "you're here," she added with rigidity, surely noticing how strange her surprise was.
Without needing to investigate further. "Everyone knows huh?" I asked resigned.
"Someone saw how upset House was, and it wasn't hard to get Chase to talk" she admitted immediately, "he was alone in the lab."
I wasn't surprised at all.
"just to be sure that Chase didn't lie we confirmed it with your mom" she added a moment later.
Shaking my head amused and completely impressed. "Of course you did" I snorted under my breath.
Smiling stiffly, of course with discomfort. "At least your patient is already in treatment" Mandy shrugged.
And that was all I needed to know.
Raising my face abruptly. "Was I right?" I asked worried.
Surprised, Mandy pulled her head back. "I don't know" she answered, "but, the girl's parents seemed extremely furious, something about a pregnancy?" she asked interested obviously in the gossip, "was it the coach? the parents yelled mostly at him."
Yes, I had been right.
Without answering Mandy, since I had no interest in completely breaking HIPAA and Mary's trust, I walked away from the desk. "Thanks Mandy" I said heading straight toward the rooms.
I wasn't surprised the parents were aware of the diagnosis, in Texas it was illegal not to inform guardians of any update in a minor's health and, I also wasn't surprised they'd yelled at the coach, that didn't mean he had abused the girl, but rather it could just be because he hadn't done his job taking care of their daughter like he should have.
Reaching the wing I found without much effort Mary's room, filled to bursting with balloons and flowers, I could see the girl with her head wrapped in bandages, lying down with her parents at her side.
Greeting the nurse on duty, I walked into the room knocking on the door frame.
As soon as she saw me. "PJ" Mary greeted me cheerfully causing her parents who had their backs to me to turn around surprised.
I hadn't thought carefully about how it would look for a strange teenager to approach the room, since I couldn't take more than two steps into the room when Mary's father completely enraged, stood up. "Is that him?" he shouted pointing at me while walking toward me, in his stride and face there was no intention of being cordial... so to speak.
Oh no.
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Author Thoughts:
As always, I'm not American, not a doctor, not a fighter, not Magnus Carlsen, not Michael Phelps, not Arsene Lupin, not McLovin, not Elliot, not Capone, not Tiger Woods, not Sam Fisher and not Greg Louganis.
Another chapter has passed, so new thanks are in order. I would like to especially thank:
11332223
Victor_Venegas
RandomPasserby96
I think that's all. As always, if you find any errors, please let me know, and I'll correct them immediately.
Thank you for reading! :D
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