Page 34 of Broken Dream

“All right, Jason. I’ll schedule you in. See you shortly.”

The click of the call ending seems to echo in the silence of the lab. The weight of what could happen, what might happen, threatens to pull me under.

With a deep breath, I grab a clipboard from a nearby counter and write Lab Canceled at the top of a piece of paper. Then I jot down some textbook pages for them to read about the thoracic area. I draft a quick email to the class letting them know as well.

They’ll be disappointed. So many of them can’t wait to cut.

But wait they will. Until next Thursday, our next lab.

And I feel not one iota of guilt about making them wait.

If I can regain the function in my right hand… If there’s even a chance…

I finish the note and tape it to the door of the lab. Then before I close and lock the door, I gaze back at the cadavers.

“Sorry,” I say out loud.

Sorry about what?

That they won’t fulfill their duties today? Won’t get cut into by eager students?

And some not so eager, as I think of Angie.

Angie…

I may be taking the first step into a return to my old life today.

This is a good thing.

So there’s no reason in the world why I should feel a sliver of disappointment at not seeing Angie Simpson in class.

Chapter Eleven

Angie

Lab Canceled, the sign on the door to the anatomy lab says.

The door is locked, but through the small window, I can see our cadavers sitting on the tables, covered.

A wave of relief flows over me.

I don’t have to cut into a dead body today.

I also won’t be seeing Jason today, and as relieved as I am about the lab cancellation, part of me is disappointed.

Really disappointed.

I can’t get that kiss out of my mind.

It was a good kiss.

A really good kiss. The best kiss I’ve ever had.

“Bummer,” a voice says from behind me.

I turn.

Ralph.