Sampled by Carina Alyce

Author:Carina Alyce [Alyce, Carina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Carina Alyce

Chapter 7

Vandy stopped to get coffee at the Panera nearby MetroGen before meeting her parents for their goodbye lunch. She’d spent the night at Anna’s—finally—and slept terribly. She kept reliving the night over and over again. Anna, good friend that she was, had not asked any questions.

“Here’s your regular, Dr. Perkins.” The clerk handed the blonde woman in front of her a soup and half a sandwich.

Vandy almost fell over when the doctor turned around. “Angela?”

The blonde from last night had confusion on her face. “Yes, and you are?”

“Vandy from karaoke yesterday. You aren’t a teacher?”

Angela sidled away from the counter. “Oh… that.”

“Your date said you were an elementary school teacher.” Vandy wasn’t giving up.

Dr. Perkins blushed, “I’m not. Michael thinks I am.”

“You’re lying to him?” Vandy asked.

“Not on purpose. There was a little mix-up about my job, and I didn’t correct him. He’s an accountant so I don’t think he’d understand.”

The same clerk handed Vandy her coffee as Angela’s story hit a little too close to home. “There’s nothing wrong with being an accountant.”

“If that’s what you want. While I’m sure it’s stressful in its own way, it’s safe. No one’s life is on the line. Simple, non-complex,” Dr. Perkins, who was not a teacher, said.

“But what happens when he finds out?” Vandy couldn’t stop asking these far too personal questions of a total stranger.

Angela smiled sadly. “What was always going to happen. I end up alone, but at least I’m true to myself.”

“So why do it?”

“Because I wanted to be fun, even if it’s not who I am.”

“I just found out I liked fun. And karaoke, and tons of other stuff I never did before. Am I addicted to fun?”

Dr. Perkins apparently understood this was really about Vandy’s problems. “Is fun hard drugs, prostitution, illicit sex, or anything illegal?”

“Fun’s telling my parents I’m at the art museum when I’m in bed with a cute guy I met on vacation. Fun’s watching terrible movies and hanging out reading books—actual books on paper.”

“Congratulations, I diagnose you with college-student-itis. You aren’t addicted to fun; you’re figuring out who you are.”

“It’s not the guy?” Vandy hadn’t been ready to consider that.

“Would you still love the books and movies if the guy disappeared? Are you enjoying all that stuff because of him or because you’re letting yourself do those things?”

Vandy opened her mouth and closed it. “I don’t know.”

“That’s the beauty of being your age. Figure out who you are and what you want, and not for a guy,” said Perkins couldn’t have been even ten years older than Vandy. She gave Vandy a sly look. “Not for your parents, either.”

“How do you know when you’ve made the right choice?”

Perkins shook her head. “No one can answer that except you. And that will be three hundred dollars.”

“It will?” Vandy blinked hard.

“No, I just always wanted to say that.”

“Oh. Well, I hope you and accountant guy get it to work when you figure out who you are.”

“I know who I am. Best of luck on figuring out who you are,” Angela said and walked off.

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