Chapter 3: Friday

When she awoke to sunlight streaming in, she had no memory of having dozed off. Everything was peaceful and clear for a few moments. She looked at the wall clock; first period had already started. She could not remember the last time she was still in bed after 8:30 am. It was almost sinful.

There was a tap at the door and a nurse entered with a tray of breakfast and a sheaf of incomplete paperwork from her admittance. She took her time finishing both and wondered how long it would be before the phone rang. The morning shift doctor came in, checked her chart and her vitals, and declared her fit for release pending a final review by the Counselor. The phone rang as he was leaving and Elaine answered it quickly.

There was a moment of silence. Then Curtis' restrained voice came on the line, "Is this a good time to disturb you, Ms. Beaugoud?"

"I'm between physicians at the moment, yes." She smiled to herself.

There was another hesitation in his voice and Elaine realized just how upset he was, "How many physicians are you seeing?"

"Thomas..." she started but he cut her off.

"Ms. Beaugoud, the students are here with me," the line went fuzzy as if a speakerphone was abruptly activated, "And they wish to say something to you."

"Oh," the switch in his tone was abrupt as well; she was not sure what to expect, "Ok."

She could hear the whispered preparation then on the count of three, the whole room shouted "Get well soon! We love you!"

She was overcome, "Oh. Thank you! I'm better already just for that. Truly. I'll be back tomorrow. In class, that is. I should be back on campus tonight so save me a seat at the social, alright?" Several voices promised seats next to them. She was warmed by the offers. "Mr. Williams, may I have a word with you?"

"Certainly." The speakerphone cut leaving only the two of them, "Yes, Ms. Beaugoud?"

"Are you ok?" she asked him.

"Am I..." he nearly exploded but regained control of his voice quickly, "I'm fine. I hope you are doing well this morning. How ever many specialists you may be seeing."

"Only one. I needed a moment to think more than anything else. I got that last night. I don't want you to worry, alright? Did you get any sleep last night?"

"I had a long talk with Yvonne. She--uh..." he cleared his throat, "Uh, Ms. Beaugoud, perhaps this would be better suited to a time when not quite so many ears were straining to hear?"

"Oh, yes." Elaine had actually forgotten that he was in the classroom still, "Of course. Good luck with 4th period--they're a handful." She hung up before he could respond and tried to wait patiently for the counselor. Around 11:30, a light tap on the door preceded Dr. Renaldo's appearance.

"You got a minute?" He chirped.

"Or two or twelve." Elaine lamented.

"You missed our card game."

"I'm available now."

"Sorry, I'm on the clock. I'm supposed to be examining some stressed out woman." He looked at his notes and pretended to check her room number again.

"You? You're the resident counselor I've been waiting for?" She wanted to throw something at him, "You could have done this last night. I could have left right after breakfast."

"Yes, but then I wouldn't have a date for lunch; Stacy can't come down today."

Elaine half smiled at that, "That qualifies as abuse of power, you know."

"I haven't finished that exam yet. It's not too late to add delusional, you know."

She huffed good naturedly, "Curtis is going to be very cross with you--I've had two meals with you before I've had one with him."

"The heart of the matter! And how are we feeling about Mr. Persistent this morning?"

"I've already spoken to him. He and the 2nd period geometry class called to wish me well."

"That was nice."

"It was. We couldn't talk personally, of course, but I felt ok afterward. I just needed a moment to catch my breath, I guess. Like you said, it was an Almost and I hadn't quite shaken it off."

"You spent a long time punishing yourself over your feelings about him."

"I didn't ever think it through. I just panicked and tried to deny the whole thing. I guess it just didn't occur to me that I over reacting a bit. If I had talked to someone about it then, I could have saved myself a lot of grief, could I?"

"It usually works that way. So why do you feel different about it today? What changed?"

"I'm not sure, really. I seem to be the only one who has an issue with it for one thing. But, really, I just don't think I can get over him."

"So you figure it's worth a try?"

"Is that a bad idea?"

"Not if you don't feel like fainting."

She smiled at that, "I don't."

"Good. Have you decided what you're going to do next?"

"Not entirely. I agreed to have dinner with him tomorrow night--off-campus so it will be just the two of us."

"Are you going to go through with it?"

"Yes."

"Good! One decision at a time." He pulled out his clipboard and made some notes, "Here, this I my card. If you find yourself beginning to panic, call me."

"Thanks."

"Ok, so as far as I'm concerned, you are officially taking up space." He smiled broadly, "Beat it, ya load."

Elaine smiled back, "What a bedside manner! I wouldn't stay another minute."

"Do you have lunch plans?"

"I thought you were buying."

He snapped his fingers, "Damn! Was hoping you forgot. Give me about half an hour and I'll meet you at the front desk."

She agreed and he left. She dressed quickly and spent most of the time waiting at the desk signing and re-signing insurance paperwork. She had to remind herself several times that she was lucky to have a policy that would cover the visit.

When Dr. Renaldo arrived, they wandered into the clinic's cafeteria, which had a surprisingly well-stocked buffet. He nagged her into taking more salad and fruit than she would have eaten otherwise and teased her about the cookie she added to her tray.