Bedside Manner (Love Under Lockdown)

He looked down at his notes, which apparently he had taken out once he’d called me to his office.

“There’s ample space at his house but apparently some other staff members cited… personality differences… a cold and rude demeanor… as their reason for requesting other living situations,” he informed me. “In your case, though, you’ll have no choice. This is all there is.”

“Oh, who will I be staying with?”

“Jake Booth,” Dr. Smith said.

My lucky day, my ass.

Chapter Four - Jake

It was a bit strange. I knew there was some connection between Julia and my current patient. Tanna wouldn’t have pulled her aside like that otherwise. The subtle gesture just reeked of conflict of interest. Going by the family resemblance, I would guess she was Julia’s grandmother.

“What was that all about?” she asked me, now that we were in a partitioned area alone together.

“Hospital regulations. It is rather frowned on for doctors to treat members of their family. It can get in the way of objectivity. You know how it is.”

“Indeed I do,” she said, nodding resolutely.

“You’re just getting a test, but still, that’s better to be done by an impartial party.”

“Gotcha, Doc.”

She hushed up then, at least long enough for me to do the required swab. I wondered if every member of her family was so talkative.

I knew that Julia had been a chatterbox in law school. To be fair, though, most people were more talkative than I was. One of my earliest memories was being brought to the doctor— a different one than the one who I saw for the sleep issue— my parents worried that I might be mute.

He assured them that I wasn’t and would begin to talk in my own time. Technically, he was right, but it turned out to be a mighty long wait.

My parents later researched things and said that delayed speech was a sign of high intelligence and used that as an excuse to push me towards medical school. If it hadn’t already been set up as my destiny, with a father and grandfather who were both doctors, I would almost think they wanted me to go just to make up for all the medical bills they’d had to pay when I was younger.

And they were wrong about me being some kind of genius, even though the exams came easier to me. I had issues dealing with the patients, because I was always an introvert.

Julia had been great with them. And I hated her for it. She had to flaunt her social skills over my head, smiling as she walked from patient to patient and got glowing reviews from our proctors. It was if she knew it was the one area I sucked at, and she really wanted to rub it in.

Still, that was no reason to dislike her grandmother. In fact, she was quite pleasant.

“Sit tight,” I told Julia’s grandmother, as I walked out of the room with the test. “I’ll be back soon with the results.”

No sooner had I put the sample in for testing, than my phone gave off its familiar call.

“This is Booth,” I answered it.

“My office,” said the department head’s commanding tone.

“Dr. Smith. But I—”

“Now, Booth.”

“Yes, sir.”

Pocketing the phone once more, I trooped off to meet the call of my lord and master, or at least while I was here at work.

I was surprised to see that Julia was already in his office. It was just my luck that my medical school rival and I would be called in at the same time. I wondered what this was about, because we had followed protocol with her grandmother, thanks to Tanna and much to Julia’s apparent dismay.

“Mr. Booth, please, take a seat,” Dr. Smith said.

Avoiding Julia’s eye, yet still able to feel the tension between us like a fog in the small room, I took a seat as instructed.

“Do you remember a few months ago when we asked for volunteers to potentially take in colleagues if need be?” the department head asked me.

“Yes, sir.”

“And how you tried to give it a go with a few prospects, but they didn’t work out?”

“Yes,” I grunted, anxious to move past this part of the questioning.

It only reminded me of how bad I was with people. None of my living arrangements had worked out, because apparently I was too grumpy.

“And do you remember how I said I’d stop placing people with you back then but would keep you on the list in case of an emergency?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Good. Because now we have just such an emergency.”

“I see.”

Apparently, I had no choice but to let my medical school rival live with me!

“This really isn’t necessary,” Julia tried to object.

“There are no other names on the list,” Dr. Smith said flatly. “They’ve all taken in other people already and have no more room.”

“I know, but isn’t there something else to be done?”