Doc by Lena Bourne

Author:Lena Bourne [Bourne, Lena]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-04-04T04:00:00+00:00

* * *

Doc

She’s been trying to turn the conversation to her husband all afternoon, and I think I’m getting too obvious by always changing the subject. But this last week has been all about finding everything I ever fucking wanted—finding something I didn’t even know I was looking for—that I’m just not ready to talk about the reason we found each other in the first place. The reason that might still end up tearing us apart forever, one way or another.

Maybe she just wants to talk about it. Maybe she just needs me to listen. But maybe she wants to talk about going back to him. I can’t hear that.

“Doc? Doc, is that you?” Roxie calls from across the aisle where I’m browsing for batteries and such, while Anne is picking out whatever she needs on the other side of the store.

I turn to greet her. “Yeah, it’s me.”

“I haven’t seen you in awhile,” Roxie says as she comes closer. “Is everything alright?”

“Why wouldn’t it be?” I ask with the widest smile I can manage after just thinking about the bastard that hurt Anne. “How’s everything with you?”

“Hudson’s been coughing and he’s running a bit of a fever,” she says. “I came to pick up some stuff for him.”

“I have stuff for him in my surgery,” I say, feeling a little guilty for not checking in at Sanctuary at all this past week. I hope all her son has is a common cold.

She smiles. “You left it locked.”

“You know where the key is,” I say, maybe a little too indignantly. But I do always make sure she knows where to find the first aid stuff, should she need it for her son or herself while I’m away. Everyone who lives at Sanctuary knows how to get into the surgery, they just prefer not to, if I’m not around. That’s probably because I get annoyed when stuff is out of place there, but also because I’m almost always around.

She lays her hand on my arm, still smiling. “Don’t worry about it, Doc. To be honest, I needed to get out of the house for a little bit. And I wouldn’t dream of bothering you for something as trivial as a cold. You deserve your away-time.”

“I know it’s been a little longer than usual this time,” I say, smiling back. “But I’m glad to hear you’re holding down the fort just fine without me.”

“We’re doing good,” she says. “Well, apart from the cold.”

“Matt, is this a friend of yours?” Anne asks, and I do detect wonder that’s not entirely innocent in her voice. She’s been trying to find out more about my life here in Pleasantville, but to avoid telling her too much, I’ve told her nothing.

I nod, and Roxie looks from me to Anne, then back at me, a very knowing smirk on her face. “I see why you’ve been taking longer than usual to get back. Well, introduce us,” she says and looks back at Anne expectantly.

I make the introductions, but Roxie’s face froze in recognition before I even spoke Anne’s name.

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