Page 18 of The Risks of Reuniting

I offer him a smile. "No plans."

"Good. You come with us to the Parque de la Reserva, okay?"

"What is that?" I ask.

"Easiest explanation – it's a park full of water fountains and features. It's beautiful," Holt answers with a nostalgic smile that tells me it's somewhere he loves.

I hesitate. I don't want to spend free time with him. It's hard enough running into him daily at the canteen, and occasionally as we're passingthrough the yard of the Center, but it feels like going sight-seeing with him would be taking down a wall that's barely holding up, and behind that wall is heartbreak that I have no desire to revisit. I've worked so hard to put the hurt away, and make peace with being over, but my natural inclination toward him is a battle that's hard to win. If only he had a terrible personality, this whole thing would be easier.

"No thanks," I respond, dying a little inside over my self-preservation winning.

I want to be stronger than this, able to go do whatever I want without Holt affecting my choices. Allie had made me swear I wouldn't be a party pooper and work myself to death. I promised her I'd do some tourist things, and yet here I am, turning down a chance. If Holt wasn't here, I'd go.

"Ah, Rachelle, buenos dias," Cesar says over my shoulder.

Rachelle beams at him. I'm a little jealous that she can be so open and friendly because there aren't any handsome skeletons in her closet who suddenly reappeared and are standing next to her in the dirt yard.

"Good morning Cesar. Holt, I'm glad to see you up and about again," she gushes happily.

"You will come with us tomorrow to Parque de la Reserva?" Cesar asks her. "Chloe says no."

Rachelle gasps and playfully slaps at my arm. "Chloe says yes. We wouldn't miss it."

Cesar beams, and I look to Holt to see an amused look on his face. "I don't . . ." I start to say, but Rachelle loops her arm around my back and tugs me away.

"See you tomorrow, amigos," she calls over her shoulder. When we're a few steps away she looks at me and shakes her head. "We are in Peru withlocals who know all the good stuff. We're going. You can be a stick in the mud in Utah. In Peru, we have some fun. Agreed?"

I can't help but smile. "Fine. But stick close to me."

"Deal," she says. "Now, let's go clean some teeth and make some people smile."

Chapter 7

Chloe

It's4:30onSaturdayafternoon and it's not looking good for our Parque de la Reserva plans. Dr. Joseph had warned us to not get too attached to weekend plans, but I hadn't truly understood that the masses would be coming down the hillside on Saturday for dental care. The people work hard at odd jobs all week, hiking the steep hillsides with buckets of water and batteries to run their lanterns or radios in the evenings as they return home. And on the weekends they seek help for their medical issues. It's enough to make me feel guilty for hoping to do some touristy things today.

Dr. J's hair is no longer slicked back. It droops, which matches the set of his thin shoulders. It's been a long day, and it doesn't look like it'll end in time for us to get on the transportation Cesar arranged. I've chosen to be okay with that. It had taken me all day Friday to decide it might be fun to go out, so it wasn't hard to let go of the idea. Besides, I'm here to assist in dental work, not watch water fountain shows.

The clinic door is open, and so are the two windows on either side, bringing through a breeze that is life-giving today. Rachelle has been humming tunes in between the drilling and buffing, and at one point she braided up her hair in an artsy style that looks like it should be photographed for a magazine. Without a mirror. She's a marvel. Today'sscrubs are toadstools and flowers, and I frown down at my sweaty plain tan scrubs. They're a letdown.

"Queenie, check the autoclave to see if those trays are finished being sterilized," Dr. J calls. "Chloe, get that low speed drill ready, and take a few notes for me."

We both hustle to do what he's asked, and once I'm settled in the chair across from him, I start writing down things that will eventually be transcribed into this patient's file. The files are still paper, kept in gigantic filing cabinets that take up half of the small clinic, and I wish I could do something to update the system. However, with all power being sourced from a small generator, and it needing to go to the medical tools, it doesn't make sense to worry too much about computer programs. I'm simply glad they have patient files at all.

"Queenie," Dr. J calls while I finish writing down notes, "we've been working since eight o'clock without a break, and I don't think it would be wise for me to do any more in-depth procedures today. Please let anyone waiting know that we can do two more cleanings, but anything else will have to be handled tomorrow."

I hear Rachelle sigh in relief as she leaves to do as asked, taking the little card that Dr. J printed with the Spanish words she'll need to say. I hope no one is outside waiting in pain, because I hate to turn anyone away, but I can see the way Dr. J's hands have become a little unsteady. This patient is getting a root canal and then a temporary crown, which will most likely end up being used as a permanent crown because the patient may not ever come back. It's imperative that the work be done as well as possible while we have the chance. It has required focus, and it's the last in a long line of things. I'm ready to be done myself. My shoulders ache from hunching over people, and my fingers are tired from pinching things and writing. And we need food soon. I'm starving.

Rachelle comes back in with a mother and two small children, maybe around six and eight years old. "The mom wants their teeth cleaned."

"Great," Dr. J replies. "Go ahead and start."

As hygienists, Rachelle and I are both qualified to do cleanings independently, and she happily chats with them in English they probably don't understand. The thing about Rachelle, though, is that she speaks a language that translates well. Sunshine and kindness. It doesn't matter what her words are, because they understand enough to know she's happy to see them and will help them. I admire that about her. I've always wished I had a little more sunshine in the way I relate to people.

"The Queen says you have plans tonight," Dr. J says to me as he finishes gluing on the temporary crown. "Pass me the floss."

I pull off a strip of floss and hand it to him. "Yeah. Cesar, one of the construction crew, invited a few people to go to a water fountain park tonight."

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