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“Maybe you can kidnap yours and bring her too,” I joke. He laughs and hangs up.
My phone buzzes in my pocket as I step out into the lobby. I pull it out to see a new text from Gracie. My heart does this little flippy thing when her name flashes across the screen. Yeah, I’m pretty obsessed with this girl. Before I can read it and reply, however, a gasp draws my attention away.
“Shoot,” Marie complains and I look up to see that she’s somehow managed to knock over an entire stack of patient notes that needed to be entered into the computer and filed.
Juniper looks like she’s about to cry, and honestly, I kind of want to join her. I haven’t been able to do much besides text and call Gracie before bed this whole week. I like knowing that I’m the last voice she hears before she goes to sleep, but I need more. And soon.
Today was supposed to be a light day so I could train Marie and finish work early. The plan was to finally take Gracie out on a second date. Unfortunately, Marie showed up late this morning, took a longer lunch break than she was supposed to, and seems to be a slow learner.
Now this?
I’m so frustrated. I thought that I was finally catching a break and I just can’t handle feeling like I’m taking two steps back now. The devastation on Juniper’s face says it all. Those notes will take hours to reorganize.
“Why the hell would you put them there?” Marie snaps at Juniper. That’s it.
“You’re fired,” I bark from behind her. Marie spins around to face me.
“What?”
“You’re fired.”
She glares at me, her nostrils flaring. I stare back at her and she huffs as she grabs her purse from under the front desk and stomps out the door.
“I’ll take care of this Juniper. Go on and head home,” I say as I bend and scoop up all of the papers.
“Are you sure?” she asks and I nod, forcing a smile. It’s not her fault I hired another dud. This is my practice, so I should be the one to right the ship.
“Yeah, I got this. Have a good night.”
She leaves and I lock the door behind her, dragging my hands down my face as I collapse behind the front desk. The familiar throbbing starts behind my eyes, pounding, pounding, pounding against my skull until I’ve worked myself up into a migraine. Perfect.
I let out a forceful breath and grab my phone, calling Gracie.
“Hey!” she answers, the excitement in her voice tearing at my heart. I hate that I’m about to disappoint her.
“Hey, Tink. I’ve got bad news. I have to stay late tonight at work.”
“Oh.” She pauses, the silence saying it all. I let her down, and I hate myself for it. “That’s okay,” Gracie follows up. “I understand.” She’s trying to be cheerful and nonchalant, but I can hear the disappointment in her voice.
My chest grows tight and my stomach sinks. I don’t like being the reason she’s upset. Maybe I should say fuck it to cleaning up this mess and go to her instead. For the first time in my life, I’m sorely tempted to ignore my work.
One look at the sheets of paper fanning out around me, however, brings me back to reality. At this point, I’m drowning in unfinished paperwork. I have these notes to organize and enter, and now I have to start the search for a new nurse all over again.
“I’ll make it up to you,” I promise, though I know my words aren’t sufficient. I can picture her forcing a smile, and I feel like an asshole.
“I’ll hold you to that,” she says.
“I’m really sorry, Gracie.”
“It’s okay. I get it. I’ll see you,” she says before hanging up. Her voice is small, though I know she was trying to be upbeat. Did I just make a huge mistake? I guess I’ll have plenty of time mulling it over while organizing all of this shit.
I get to work, entering in the stack, paper by paper. It’s close to nine before I have it all done and organized. I debate trying to call Gracie but the few times I messaged her throughout the evening, she seemed off. It took her nearly an hour to answer my first text, and even then, it was a one-word response. It doesn’t sit right with me, but I don’t know what I can do about it tonight.
She’s probably asleep by now anyway. Plus, if she was uncommunicative through text, I can’t imagine she’d want to see me in person. At least, that’s what I tell myself as I gather myself and head out to my car. Maybe I’m just being a coward.
The streets are deserted as I make my way home. Cherry Falls shuts down, for all intents and purposes, around eight in the evening. At that point, people are inside, spending time with their families. That never bothered me before, but now that I’m about to walk into an empty house, I feel empty.
Making an out of character, spur-of-the-moment decision, I do a U-turn and head to the store instead of my house. I pick up hot chocolate and pastries and scramble to think of some way to apologize as I make my way to Gracie’s apartment.
