“Whatever. Your talking’ hippie bull shit. I know what makes me happy, and what I need to survive.” I closed my eyes, closing further conversation. Gabe sighed but didn’t pursue the topic.
We arrived at the Hopi Wellness Center and agreed to meet at the Public Health Nursing trailer after stowing our suitcases in our respective apartments. Taking in Chelsea’s empty single bed in the small apartment we shared, I chewed on my lip. How was she holding up? My fingers twitched on my cell phone, resisting the urge to call and check in. No, Kale, my ex-boyfriend, was with her. She’d be okay.
“Good morning Gabe, Fia.” Carmen smiled at us, waving her hot pink three-inch claws at us as we entered the PHN trailer.
Lord, how could anyone start an IV antibiotic with nails like those? Apparently, Carmen’s desk job allowed her more freedom with her manicures than nurses in the field.
“Good morning Carmen, “ Gabe said with cheer, helping himself to one of the two chairs in front of her desk. “Great to see you.”
“Mornin’,” I said without warmth.
“And where’s Chelsea? She’s usually not running later than… most.” Carmen’s attempt at diplomacy made me snort.
“Headache, she’s staying in town this week,” Gabe said, scratching his head. Lord, what a horrible liar.
“Could be meningitis,” I said with a smirk. Carmen raised her brown eyebrows.
“Hmm. Your trio sure calls in a lot compared with my other interns. I’m asking for medical records next year,” Carmen muttered. She handed us a list of patient visits for the week, and rotation schedule within the hospital.
Sitting in the tiny, stuffy computer lab at the HWC made me want to gag. Gabe sat in front of the boxy desktop computer, and I resisted the urge to spin around my office chair from boredom. My left butt cheek fell asleep about ten minutes in, and Gabe’s relentless chatter showed no sign of stopping.
Researching made me yawn. Researching for a project we were to present at the end of the internship- mere weeks away. Gabe’s perky attitude grated on my nerves. He could find excitement in clipping toenails. He probably sprinkled Prozac in his morning coffee. Wait, Gabe didn’t drink coffee. Maybe his mother dusted his cereal every morning with the happy pill?
“You and Chelsea collected lots of articles. Let’s whittle down the list to the most recent literature-“
“How about you whittle down your gusto, Kate? We’re talking about research articles here, not the Olympics,” I said, studying my nails. Gabe held his breath, and I raised my eyes to look at him. He narrowed his almond shaped dark brown eyes, making his eyebrows bunch together. Hmmm, pissed off Gabe looked sexy in a messed up sort of way.
Wait, what?
“Don’t call me Kate, Fia. Kim or Gabe. Wait. Is that a broken nail?”
“Um, appears to be so.” His reaction made me grin. “Snagged it on my suitcase on the way in. Wait, what the hell are you doing?”
Gabe reached into his pocket and pulled out a swiss army knife. He flipped through the tools and switched out the file. He motioned with his hand. “Come here.”
Oh my lord. “You are kidding me. You are not going to do my nails, Gabe.” I shook my head, but couldn’t keep from grinning like an idiot. Gabe shrugged.
“Hey, I’ve got mad skills in manicures. Watching Mom crack the whip at the nail spa since I could walk taught me a bit.” He winked. Scooting my office chair so I sat between his legs, I laughed out loud. Gabe held his breath but didn’t take his eyes from of mine until he took my hand.
A warm hand picked up my own, and he clipped a piece of nail. My mouth parted at the surprisingly intimate action. No one besides my mother and nail technicians ever worked on my nails. The realization made my heart squeeze. Gabe raised the file from his combo knife and shaped the nail so it looked the same, if not shorter, as the other nails. His fingers lingered on my own. I stared at our hands, his big and warm on my small ones. He squeezed and let go. I bit my lip in disappointment.
Gabe totally had the hots for me. His eyes brightened when we saw each other, and he showed genuine compassion for me when I deserved none, like when I called in sick to the internship. He cared about me, even though I did nothing to encourage the crush. Gabe’s sense of humor and intelligence were wasted on me. Gabe deserved a girl who could see the world as he did, not a spoiled rich diva. He saw wonder and happiness. I saw dollar signs and greed.
My take on life held a bitter edge, having lost my mother as a teenager, then my gymnastics career a few years later. I turned towards the darker side of life to ward off annoying feelings like hope. Cynicism kept disappointment away.
After selecting the articles to include in our paper, we visited our patients of the day. The late afternoon sun warmed my back as we made our way back to the apartments on the compound. Gabe and I were making plans to meet for dinner in the hospital cafeteria, when sun darkened, and a blast of cold air sent goosebumps up my spine.
“Holy crap. Looked like a pterodactyl, right?” Gabe said, using his hand to shield his eyes as he stared up at the blue sky. No signs of whatever caused the wind and shadow, but I had a guess.
“Probably an eagle or hawk. I’ll see you in an hour.” Slipping the key in the lock, I waved and turned the knob. The thing with doors is, you never know what waits on the other side.
“Hello, Sofia.”
Books by M. Rae Göğetap:
Moonfire Series
Moonfire, book 1
Sunshadow, book 2 (coming February 2017)
Website: www.facebook.com/mraewrites
Moonfire Page 30