Sack Time

by A. M. Willard

  “All cell phones down… You now have six hours,” is all he says before punching the button on the timer. I mentally remind myself that I can’t focus on the hours, nor the minutes that are counting down. If I do that, I’m sure that I’ll work myself up and have a panic attack.

  I slide my card into the computer and verify that all my information is correct. The bright green button glows before me: BEGIN TEST. With a deep breath in and an even bigger exhale, I tap it and start with question one.

  Really…

  The first section that pops up on my screen is about sexually transmitted infections. Has this thing been spying on me? Has it placed some thinking cap on my head? Good thing I studied this and have seen some of it firsthand when I was doing clinical hours for Dr. Davis Sr. My mind shifts back to the computer and the tasks before me. Make it to the end… Stay awake… Reward—getting laid… Of course that’s the perfect thing to think about while you’re answering about sexual transmitted diseases. For the next two hours, I lose myself in the questions—following my gut instinct on each one. Some have been worded to throw us off, but that’s not going to stop me today.

  “Break time,” Mr. Lambert yells from the front, bringing me out of my focus. I do need to use the restroom and stretch, but I was on a roll clicking answers while kicking ass.

  I let out a puff of air, stand, and reach up toward the ceiling to stretch my back. I slide my phone out of my bag, powering it up while I head out toward the hall to check in with Greyson. Instead of calling, I open my text and notice that I have a few waiting for a response.

  Ava: Rock it like the beast you are, or I’ll get you another Hollywood.

  Me: I plan to rock it and never will I ever get that done again.

  Greyson: Just wanted to say I’m thinking of you and can’t wait until later tonight. I actually told a pregnant lady to hold out for as long as she can today. See, I mean business.

  Me: How dare her vagina come between mine getting lucky? Thanks for thinking of me, and I have to admit I wasn’t thinking about you for at least the last two hours. I’m still awake, so that’s a plus. I’ll check in later.

  Other than June, Ava and Greyson are the only ones who know about me retaking the test today. I felt it was the safest thing to do. I mean, I’ve already let my parents down the last few times, so I didn’t want to say anything until it was real. Heck, I might not even tell them after today. Might as well wait for the real results to come. I know it’s rare that the computer messes up. I have heard of horror stories with that happening. To play it safe, I will not look for a job, nor tell anyone that already doesn’t know about the score. With my luck, that stupid box that has a mind of its own will tell me I got a ninety-five, when in reality I made a fifty-nine. I quickly do my business and make a pit stop near the water fountain for a sip of nasty H2O. Yes, I refused to bring my bottle out to refill it. If I start that, I’ll end up doing the pee pee dance in my chair. It’s as cold as all get out in the room, which is perfect to cause any normal person to sleep, not to mention have an accident. Satisfied that I’ve completed everything, I head back to my desk and power down my phone. Before long, it’s time to start again. This time I glance up and notice that we have two more hours until lunch, and I’m hoping by the next break afterward I’m done and can hip hop my little shimmying butt out of here.

  Flying through my questions, I pause before I start the next one, knowing that the buzzer is fixing to go off for lunch. No sooner than I lean back, Mr. Lambert announces it’s lunch time without even getting up from his chair. I blow it off, stand, and grab my stuff. I packed a sandwich last night as I didn’t want to risk the chance of getting caught in traffic and returning after the doors had been locked. That would be my luck this time. Forget falling asleep, nope I got locked out. That is one story I refuse to tell.

  Pushing open the steel door, the sun filters down on my cold skin. I stand here in the middle of the sidewalk for a moment longer than needed to soak it up as the other students pass by in a hurry. I can’t help but laugh at them, as I remember the times I’ve been here before. Only once did I not bring a lunch, and that was the first time. Didn’t matter since I was out before they stopped serving breakfast at McDonald’s drive-thru. Moving toward my car, I spot a familiar one next to it. The closer I get the wider my smile is. Greyson climbs out of the driver side, stops, and puts his arm on the roof before smiling up at me.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Came to bring my girl lunch and check on her. You know, offer up my services if need be.”

  “Oh really, and what services would that be?”

  “My lips, maybe a hand and more lips,” he says before giving me a nod to get in the car. I slink my small frame down into the leather seat and close my door. Once seated, the aroma of pizza sauce slams into me. With wide eyes, I turn and look at Greyson who is now sporting the widest of grins I’ve witnessed on him before.

  “Is that what I think it is?”

  “Depends on what you think it is? I asked them to serve my penis as a topping, but they didn’t like that much.”

  Swatting at him, I go to say, “No you did not, Greyson Davis! You can’t be offering that thing to just anyone.”

  “Nope, I’ll just offer you it as a topping,” he says with a wink as he hands me a slice.

  “This is so good,” I say with a mouthful of food.

  “Welcome. How’s it going?”

  Wiping the corners of my mouth, I place the half eaten slice down and lean back in the seat. “Long, but I feel good about it. I’m just ready for the big DONE button to pop up with a score. I swear if I fail this thing, you will need to just toss me off the pier and feed me to the fish.”

  “I’m not tossing you anywhere but over my shoulder.”

  “Is that all you think about?”

  “Yes… I’m a guy, you’re fucking hot as hell, and I can’t wait to bury myself deep within you. So, you better pass that test or we will be breaking another one of your rules.”

  “I thought we said they were fun to break?”

  “We did, but you’ve been like a cop with them. I want to break every one of them that we have.”

  “That’s a lot of breaking. Can’t we just go slow and do a few at a time?”

  “Maybe, just pass your test so we can practice then.”

  “Sounds like a plan. How’s your day been?”

  “Busy. We have so many that are expecting right now, and I’m just biding my time before they all pop. I have a few more exams when I get back, and then the rest are check-ups to see how mom and baby are doing.”

  “Isn’t it great, though? I mean, you get to witness the most precious thing in life.”

  “It is. I remember the first delivery I witnessed; it’s actually the reason I went into Obstetrics and Gynecology. At first I wanted to practice internal medicine. That way my dad didn’t pressure me anymore to join the practice.”

  “Do you regret not doing it? I mean, it appears that you love what you do.”

  “I do, and I’m glad I changed. Even if I never have kids, at least I still get to experience the delivery almost daily.”

  When those words hit my ears, I’m silent. We’ve only been officially dating for what—three days I think. Why would I know if he wants kids or not? Does it matter? I mean, we are in the getting to know each other phase. People don’t fall in love in four days with someone. Wait, why am I thinking about this? I shake my head, pick up my other half of pizza, and focus on eating.

  “You’re quiet,” he says, looking forward as he places his hand on my legs.

  “Just tired, that’s all.”

  “No, you stopped talking when I said even if I never have kids.”

  “No, I didn’t,” I respond in a much higher pitched voice than intended.

  “Yeah, you did.”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Do you want kids?”

  “What? What kind of question is that?”

  “It
’s an honest question, might as well throw it out into the world. It’s not like if you agree one is just going to pop out of the glove box. Trust me, I didn’t pay extra for that option.”

  I can’t help but laugh at his silly statement. Turning my body to face him, I grab his hand into mine. “Yes, someday I’d love to have a family. At least one. You know someone to mold. What about you?”

  “I’d like three. I grew up being an only child, and would have loved to have had a brother or sister to drive crazy.”

  “Wow, three huh?”

  “Does that scare you?” he asks.

  “Nope, not at all. Plus, you never know, I might not be that person,” I say while glancing down at our hands.

  “Never know, but I wouldn’t rule it out.”

  I don’t respond. I’m not sure what to say to that. Is Greyson the one for me? Am I the one for him? Yes, my heart flutters when he touches me. Okay, he doesn’t have to even touch me; all it takes is for me to think about him for it the fly away. What is it they say when you meet someone and the relationship is new? Oh, the honeymoon phase… Oh hell no, we need a new name. Last time I entered something called that, my ass cheeks were spread open for the world to view as hot wax was smothered in between them. Nope… We are going to call this the sex phase. A time where we can explore each other, get to know our body parts, and well—have fun. No babies will be in the making… No honeymoon anything…

  “I need to head back in, and you have babies to go look at. I’ll call you as soon as I leave,” I say as I pull my hand out from his.

  “Sherry, you okay?”

  “I am. I just… I need to focus. Thank you for lunch; it was a nice surprise,” I say before leaning over and placing a kiss on his cheek.

  Right as my feet hit the pavement, I briskly walk from his car as if it was on fire. I can’t stop and turn around as I’m afraid to see the look on his face. Greyson just showed up and surprised me with my favorite food, and what do I do? I run like that baby tried to open the glove box and hop into my tunnel.

  Pacing the hallway, I clear my thoughts before I head back to my seat. I’m in the last stretch, and that’s my focus. What isn’t my current one is the fact that I might happen to love Greyson and whether or not he loves me? The baby talk scared the life out of me. What if I end up allergic to them like I did my fur babies? I can’t pack them up in a carrier and send them to live with someone else. Shaking it off, I plop down in my seat in just enough time to let out a sigh and hear,

  “Your time has begun,” Mr. Lambert states, bringing me out of my fog. I push it down and focus on the words glaring back at me.

  Greyson

  I’m not sure what I said or did, but something caused Sherry to run from me like I was about to hold her hostage. My eyes didn’t waver from watching her until she made it safely through the door. Sitting here, I rehash the conversation and try to figure out what I said or didn’t say. Was it the family talk? Hell, I’m not sure at this point. It could be the simple fact that she’s jumpy because of the stress from today. Maybe I shouldn’t have shown up with lunch; maybe it was too much and a bigger distraction than I expected.

  I made sure to clear some time to do this when I arrived this morning at work. Even though she made a lunch, I didn’t want her overthinking her morning and every answer that she might have thought was answered incorrectly. Figured we could catch up, and I’d distract her. Seems that this was a backfire on my part. Before I place the car in reverse, my phone buzzes.

  Office: You have two moms in active labor. Just received the call from the hospital.

  I respond back immediately letting them know that I am headed that way to check on them. Even though they are in active labor, it could be hours before anything happens. Making my way across town, my thoughts are on Sherry and how she’s doing. She’s smart and knows every answer frontward and backward, only if I could get her out of that head of hers.

  As soon as I park in the parking garage at the hospital, it dawns on me what might have scared her. We were fine until the talk about family came up. Maybe that’s what did it? Maybe not. But I do know that the temperature changed when I blurted out that I wanted three kids. It must be weird to hear this coming from a guy. Most men don’t want to discuss this topic, nor do they want to admit that they want three or more children running around the house. I’m thirty-one and if I ever plan to have a family, I need to start thinking about this. Will Sherry be the one that I drop down to one knee for and pour my heart out to? I can’t answer that today. However, I can say that she is the only one I think about. She’s the only one I want to share how my day has been with.

  Swiping my ID card at the labor and delivery door, I make my way over to the nurses’ station and grab my charts.

  “Afternoon, Dr. Davis,” the cute redhead from behind the desk says, bringing me out of my head.

  “Afternoon,” I respond but can’t remember her name. I take a quick glance at her ID, noticing her name’s Nancy. I catalog this for a later date. I can’t promise that I’ll remember her name the next time I cross paths with her. I take off down the corridor, locating the first labor and delivery room. With a swift knock, I enter and greet our not so happy looking mother.

  “How ya feeling, Lauren?”

  “Not so well, Dr. Davis. My back hurts… Well, everything hurts.”

  “That’s to be expected. Let’s take a look and see what we have going on, shall we?”

  “Okay,” is all she says, thrashing her head back down to the pillow. My eyes cut over to the corner where her husband is sitting, nose in his phone and not paying the first bit of attention to his wife. I’ve come accustomed to this; it grates my nerves that at times our expecting fathers lose focus in here. Some are attending to their wives, while others are bothered to be here. I’ve met Lauren’s husband before and expect that by the time we’re pushing, he will be a wreck watching her.

  Finishing up my exam, I toss my gloves in the trash and move up toward so Lauren can see me.

  “You’re around six centimeters, focus on your breathing and relax. I’ve got rounds and patients to wrap up at the office. I expect we will have a baby around dinner time. If you need anything, have the nurse page me, okay.”

  “Okay,” she says with a soft smile up at me. I nod over at her husband and head out to check my next mother.

  With a quick exam, I expect that we will be having back to back babies this evening. Quickly, I exit the floor so I can get back to the office. I need to wrap up my day there, and then I can focus on deliveries. It’s when I get back to the office that I remember Sherry and I have plans, ones that will have to change. It’s one of the downfalls with this job. Babies don’t wait for me to get laid, nor eat. I work on their terms, and it seems today at least two are demanding that I pay attention to them and not my needs.

  Stopping by the front desk at my office, I ask, “Lynn, can you do me a favor?”

  “Sure, Dr. Davis, what do you need.”

  “Call over to the animal shelter and ask for a lady named Lucy. Tell her who you are and that I need for her to call me.”

  “Okay, are you adopting a stray?”

  “No, nothing like that. Just have her call me or come get me when you have her on the line. I need a favor.”

  “Got it,” Lynn agrees, and I watch as she begins the search for the shelter’s number.

  Making my way through two more patients, I finally get pulled away to take Lucy’s call. She agrees to help, and will even deliver it to Sherry this evening. I explained that I’d text her once I hear from Sherry. This way we can gauge on the time for her surprise. There’s no way I’ll be there to see her face, nor spend the evening with her since I was just told I have one more expecting mother at the hospital waiting to deliver. Last year, the most I’d had done in one day was five. Five infants coming into this world on the same day was tiring. Four were natural and one turned into an emergency C-section. Fingers crossed today is routine.

  By the
end of the day, I’m sitting in my office going over a few files and wonder why I haven’t heard from Sherry. A part of me wants to text her, while the other half says to give her space. Leaning back in my chair, I run my hands through my hair frustrated that I don’t understand what happened today. Why the quick climate change with her? This whole dating thing is new to me. Not that I didn’t date before; it was different. With Sherry, I want to get to know her—know her body. Find out what makes her tick, what calms her down when I feel her slipping through my hands. All of a sudden, I jump up from my desk and begin to pace the carpeted floor. Why do I care so much for someone who not only drives me crazy, but we haven’t known each other very long? It dawns on me; Sherry Wilde just might be the one for me. The one that I lay everything down for. The one that I want to come home to each night, share my day with as she does with me. I brush it away, as that can’t be the reason. We’ve not even had sex yet, how could our connection be this strong from just a few make out sessions?

  I blame lust.

  The rules that we want to break.

  They say that rules aren’t meant to be broken, but with the two of us, we want to bend them so far back that when they snap there’s no repair—no going back.

  A knock on the doorframe brings me out of my mini panic. “Dr. Davis, the hospital called and Lauren is ready.”

  “Thanks, let them know I’m headed there now.”

  Just like that my day shifts once again. Now all I have time for is to focus on delivering a healthy baby and keeping mom comfortable. I’ll worry about my life later.

  Right as I go to enter the first room, my phone vibrates from my pocket. Reading it, I wonder what it truly means. Did Sherry not pass? That’s just not possible. She knew that test in her sleep. Instead of focusing on it, I send a message to Lucy to let her know that Sherry is home and we can move forward with the plan.

  Pushing the door open, I announce my presence. “I heard we were ready to have a baby.”