Page 37 of True Blue

And I think I might just get it.

Right now, I'm about halfway through my fourth year of residency—which doesn’t feel real. I was one of the lucky ones to find their specialty early and stick with it.

Back at the start, oncology didn’t jump out at me. I assumed I had a natural surgeon brain, but my old professor and mentor at Northwestern saw something in me. He suggested oncology, and I resisted at first—until the first day of my first rotation, years ago.

I was assigned to shadow a cocky senior resident who said he wanted to ‘pop my cherry’ and told me to go break the news to his patient that her cancer had returned.

I shook as I delivered the news, but somehow, I found the right words to inspire hope. She hugged me and said she wanted to start treatment right away. She wanted to fight.

Afterward, I received praise from the chief attending, while my senior resident was scolded for letting me deliver the news. Now, years later, I’m a senior resident myself.

Almost at the finish line.

I’ve been offered a position at Hyde, as well as at some hospitals in Michigan and Wisconsin. But I haven’t received a response from my dream hospital—Bluewater Cancer Center.

It’s a relatively new hospital in the shore town of Cape May, New Jersey—almost 900 miles away. Only fifteen minutes from the beach, and for a girl who’s never been, that sounds incredible.

I’ve always been landlocked in the Midwest through college and med school.

This is another reason for The Vacation. For the last ten years, I’ve been planning and saving for my dream vacation through Europe. Four weeks traveling in London, Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin, Florence, and then finally Santorini.

I’ve been scrimping every spare cent I can that doesn’t go to my bills or loans, and putting it in a designated bank account. I’ve been saving since I was seventeen, and I have $11,000 saved. I could just throw it at my student debt, but Phoebe talked me out of it.

“You’re going to be making beaucoup bucks soon, Doc. Go on the goddamn vacation and enjoy life before medicine swallows it whole for a while.”

She’s right.

As an attending, it’s going to be quite a while before I get to enjoy a long vacation like this again, so I might as well do it now.

I’ve put it off three times already—once before med school. Again, the summer before my intern year. And then again for the same reasons: wanting some more money to make the best of my trip.

The time is now.

And as my fingers tangle with the ones on my stomach, I smile, thinking about how I’ll be able to share it with my Teddy.

He had said yes before I finished asking the question.

I drift in and out of consciousness for the next forty minutes before my alarm goes off, telling me we need to get up now or we’ll be late to the Williams Thanksgiving.

Not that I’m in any rush.

I wasn’t able to attend last year because I was working, but this year I have off. I worked all day yesterday, and Teddy came over to my apartment after, as he normally does after my shifts.

“Five more minutes,” Teddy groans, arms tightening around my waist.

I shake my head. “We have to get up.”

Teddy whines, making me giggle. “Do we have to?”

“It’s your family Thanksgiving. Sucks Danielle can’t come,” I say, genuinely disappointed. I’ve grown close with Teddy’s sisters, even at a distance.

“Should I be concerned with how close you three are?” Teddy chuckles.

“Very.”

“You three and Nana could rule the world.”

I smile.