Page 58 of Egotistical Jerk
Somehow Aunt Vera managed to usher me inside the house and close the door behind us without letting go of me. Holding me tight, she walked us to the kitchen and motioned for me to take a seat.
"I know you're more of a coffee girl," she said as she moved around the cozy space. "But nothing soothes better than a cup of chamomile."
With a quick reassuring squeeze to my shoulder, she set a box of tissues—that she produced from who knew where—in front of me before proceeding with her tea preparation.
Keeping my gaze on her, I pulled a tissue from the box and tried my best to wipe the wetness from my face. The more I swiped, the faster my tears fell. With a shaky sigh, I dropped my head into my hands and berated myself.
A touch to my arm brought my attention to my aunt's worried face as she set the steaming cup of tea in front of me. Eyes searching mine, she claimed the chair next to me and then gently pleaded, "Will you tell me why you are so upset?"
She looked so much like my dad—another reminder of what I'd lost—and in the vulnerable state I was, it was too much to take in. Tearing my gaze from her, I focused on the hot liquid in front of me. I had half a mind to simply swallow it all down if only to stall spilling my guts for a few minutes longer.
But somehow, I knew Aunt Vera would patiently wait until I was ready to talk. She wouldn't prod and push. She'd just wait. The thought was confirmed when I glanced her way and saw her carefully spooning sugar into her tea.
"I lost a patient today," I admitted softly, and it hurt.
Not just emotionally, physically too. My throat felt thick and scratchy. As if my aunt knew this, she wordlessly tilted her chin toward the tea sitting in front of me.
Nodding, I pulled it closer and after breathing in deep I brought the cup to my lips for a small sip. The hot liquid soothed my throat and settled somewhere inside me like a hug. Wanting more of that comfort, I cradled the cup between my palms and focused on the table.
"She wasn't just a patient; she was my friend."
A fresh stab of pain shot through me and I closed my eyes, but when the only thing I saw was Mrs. DuBois's lifeless body, I quickly opened them again.
"Sebastian was right," I said dryly. "I should've spent more time being her doctor, maybe then I would've seen the signs clearer."
Aunt Vera's incredulous snort filled the room, my attention immediately snapped to her. Brows furrowed, mouth agape, I just stared at her. She twisted in her seat, angling her body toward me and shook her head.
"You can't think like that, Mimi."
She saw my protest coming and held up her hand to keep it from spilling out. "Being a doctor is about so much more than just treating people." My aunt pinned me with a hard stare. "Weren't you the one who told me that?" I nodded, and she went on. "From the bits you've told me about her, I know she was lonely and by being her friend you took that away."
Aunt Vera reached across the table to wrap her fingers around my wrist. "Every time you spent an extra five minutes with her, you were busy treating her heart. Death is a sad fact of life none of us can escape. You and I know that very well. But going to the beyond and not knowing whether you were loved or if you'll be missed, that must be what hell looks like.Yousaved Mrs. DuBois from that."
The stupid tears were back with a vengeance, falling faster than they had before. Trust my aunt to seek out the good in anything tragic. I loved her for it. So freaking much. The hand still holding onto my wrist gave it another squeeze.
"Is that all that's bothering you?"
I shook my head. The need to purge myself of all these feelings was suddenly too much. Licking my lips, I opened my mouth and told my aunt about the interview. About Sebastian, what I felt for him, what he kept from me. Everything.
Aunt Vera patiently listened. She nodded and shook her head at times, but she didn't interrupt. Not once. That should have been warning enough that I wouldn't like the words coming out of her mouth when she eventually spoke.
"All right," she said carefully. A little too carefully. "I understand why you are upset, but you also said that you received another job offer. So, unless I'm mistaken, you'll still be a practicing diagnostician?"
I narrowed my scratchy eyes. "Yes. But he lied to me, and if Newlife hadn't offered me this position, I probably would have ended up working in the ER."
Aunt Vera's head was shaking before I was done speaking. Pulling her hand away, she traced the rim of her cup with her forefinger.
"Shoulda, woulda, coulda. Focusing on the past isn't going to change the present." Her eyes found mine again. "Sure, he made a mistake. One that could have had horrible consequences. I get that. Just as I understand why you are feeling hurt and betrayed. But Mimi, wouldn't you have quit to take this new job, anyway?"
Blinking, I opened my mouth before closing it and opening it again. "Yes."
"So, the fact that you can't work at Memorial's diagnostic department is irrelevant?"
I frowned. "Yes."
Aunt Vera nodded sharply. "It's obvious that you care for this man a great deal… I don't want you to miss out on something wonderful because of one silly misunderstanding." I gave her a look that said nothing about this was silly. She just laughed. "Trust me there will come a day when you'll look back on this and think exactly that."
"If you say so," I muttered under my breath.
