Page 83 of Broken Dream

He nods and doesn’t press me further. We stand there awkwardly for a moment before he smacks the door one more time and then walks away, leaving me alone in the hallway.

I lean against the door, staring at the sign as if it might change if I look hard enough. But it remains stubbornly the same.

Anatomy Lab Canceled

Another day without Jason. Another day without the excitement that his presence brings, without the sparks that fly whenever our eyes meet. The hallways seem gray and lifeless.

Is he avoiding me?

I can’t blame him, of course. I’m his student, and what happened with us…

But no. He’s not avoiding me. He wouldn’t punish his other students like that.

“You’re still here?” A voice startles me from my thoughts. It’s Tabitha.

I shrug. “I guess I was hoping the sign would change.”

She gives me a sympathetic smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes. “It won’t,” she says, setting her books on the floor and then leaning against the wall beside me. “But that’s surprising, coming from you.”

“I made a perfect cut yesterday,” I say.

“You did.” She smirks. “After much prodding. You sure you want to stick with psychiatry?”

“I’m sure.”

“Well, we’ve got over three years of med school before we have to decide on our internship rotations.” She gently punches my shoulder. “You may change your mind yet.”

“Maybe,” I say, though I already know I won’t. The study of the mind has always fascinated me. It’s a puzzle to solve, a mystery to unravel. And it doesn’t involve any cutting.

Not physically, at least.

Tabitha nudges me with her shoulder. “You never know. You might just find yourself falling in love with some other field. Maybe even surgery.”

I give her a small laugh. “Yeah, maybe if they invent bloodless surgery.”

Tabitha laughs along with me and picks up her books from the floor. “I’d better head to the library. I’m going to grab some snacks first and then get some studying done.”

As Tabitha fades down the hall, I reach for my own bag and start to turn away when a familiar figure catches my eye. Jason. He rounds the corner, looking harried. His eyes meet mine, but he quickly looks away.

He’s close enough now that I can hear his labored breathing, see the troubled tenseness in his jaw. Something is wrong.

“Jason?” I call out.

He stops in his tracks but doesn’t turn to face me.

“Are you okay?”

For a moment, I’m not sure he’s going to respond. Until finally?—

He turns. “I’m fine.”

“Really?” I ask. “Because you canceled class. And you kind of look like shit.”

He winces at my bluntness but doesn’t argue. Instead, he leans against the wall, his breath still ragged.

“You canceled lab,” I repeat, “so why are you here?”

“I have a meeting, and I forgot my notes in the lab yesterday.” He unlocks the door to the classroom.