I thought of all our lab time together as I taught him biology. He was so quick to learn. It had started out with awkward silences, but with every class spent together we talked more.
I'd learned about how his parents had grand plans for him, but had never bothered to ask him what he wanted. He wasn't sure himself back then, but he knew he wanted out from under them. It was a big part of why he was always getting into trouble.
Dr. Matthews smiled and for a moment I caught a glimpse of the Jacob I once knew.
“Let's see. I got into a community college just outside of Des Moines and earned my associates there. Transferred to Iowa State, and got my bachelor’s in biology.”
“Biology?”
“You inspired me,” he replied. His blue eyes crinkled in a smile. “So, thanks for that. Anyway, I went to Medical School. Did my residency in Denver. Got a job there. And I almost got married, but didn't.”
“I'm sorry to hear that, Dr. Matthews,” I told him. But I wasn't really sorry.
“Seriously, call me Jacob.” He smiled that slightly crooked smile that had made my knees weak in high school. He'd only gotten better at it.
It was then that Stephanie arrived with our drinks and a basket of fried cheese. The conversation paused for a moment as she told us our burgers would be out soon and the cheese was on the house. We smiled and thanked her.
The hum of the cicadas thrummed as the sun slowly made it's way to the horizon. Everything was awash in orange and yellow.
“So, what happened?” I asked, sipping on my drink and then picked up a homemade fried mozzarella stick. It was crispy and gooey and delicious. There were definite perks to being a favorite person in a small town.
He took a long sip of his drink.
“Her name was Diana. I met her my first year at the job and we hit it off. Two years later, we were planning a wedding.” He picked up his drink and swirled the amber liquid before continuing. “I was fresh out of residency and didn't really have a good way to pay for the big wedding she wanted, so I started moonlighting at an ER in the city on days she worked. I didn't tell her that I was working there. The money was going to be a surprise.”
I nodded, sipping my drink. I knew plenty of docs that worked two jobs. Medical school was not cheap. Those loans were hard to pay off.
“Anyway, one night this guy comes in with textbook appendicitis. The OR is backed up and the ER is slow for once, so we keep him and start the process. He's in a lot of pain, so I give him some meds since he signed consent.”
I took another cheese stick and munched quietly, listening to his story. He took a deep breath.
“He starts telling me about his girlfriend. How amazing she is, how he's going to marry her, how great the sex is...”
I choked a little on my cheese and Jacob looked up. He raised an eyebrow to ask if I was okay. I took a sip of water and motioned him to keep going.
“He was high as a kite on the meds. I learned more than I ever wanted to know about this man and his girlfriend while we waited for her to arrive or the OR to open up. Girlfriend showed up first. Walked into his room and kissed him.”
I could already see where this was going. “Oh no. It was Diana, wasn't it?”
“Yup. She tried to play it off, but she kissed him right in front of me. I had to go take a walk around the parking lot.” His fist tightened and pain filled his blue eyes. “He was no longer my patient that night.”
“I'm so sorry,” I told him. I felt terrible for him. I could only imagine the pain of finding out that someone you loved was cheating on you behind your back.
“I ended it right there. As far as I know, she's still with appendicitis guy. I found out that a couple of people I thought were friends either knew about them or suspected. No one told me.” He took a big sip of his drink. “That wouldn't happen here.”
“No, it wouldn't. You can't even pick up a tomato at the grocery store without the gossip brigade announcing you're a vegetarian,” I replied. There were some perks of the Ladies' Bridge Club being in everyone's business.
“I needed a change.” He shrugged and picked up a bite of cheese. “And cheese. You can't get this stuff anywhere else. So, that's why I'm back.”
I giggled and took another piece myself. “I'm sorry that happened to you.”
“It hurt at the time, but I think I dodged a bullet. I took the money I'd saved up and started the process of buying Dr. Taggert out of the clinic. He's not totally ready to retire, so he likes giving me the lion's share of clinic hours and call time. I'm happy again. I don't have the stress anymore. Plus, I got to hire you.”
“And I'm glad you did,.” I smiled at him and he grinned back at me.
“What about you? Why are you here?” he sipped at his drink.
I shrugged. “Family. I liked the city, but I think I need to be here for awhile. I'll go back eventually.”