Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 118309 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 592(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118309 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 592(@200wpm)___ 473(@250wpm)___ 394(@300wpm)
As the elevator arrives at the underground parking garage, he slides a bead-like device out of his ear and stores it in his pocket. “Best thing that ever came out of the US,” he murmurs when he notices the direction of my gaze. “That and Hooters.”
I roll my eyes before helming our walk to the SUV. I’m so tired that I don’t wait for Ano to open my door, neither here nor at my apartment. I don’t even guzzle down the vitamin water I consume at night to replace the electrolytes I lose during late shifts because breaks are minimal and snacks are hard to come by.
I make a beeline for the sofa bed, preferring it over the option Ano offered on day two of our unexpected roommate experience. He wanted me to sleep in my grandparents’ bed. I couldn’t do that. Not solely because it is hard and lumpy but because it is the bed my parents shared when we first moved to Russia.
It was the one thing that was solely theirs. They didn’t have to share it with anyone, and I wanted it to stay that way until I found out a new mattress costs more than my grandfather’s monthly medication.
Even with my grandfather in the forefront of my mind, I can’t pretend my head isn’t about to explode out of my nostrils. “Can you ask Dr. Muhamed to slide my grandfather’s latest workup under my door? My head is thumping.”
“Then you should drink something. You’ll only make it worse by going to bed without taking something for it.” Ano taps two headache tablets into his palm before he shoves them under my nose with a bottle of vitamin water from the refrigerator.
“I don’t want to take anything.”
“Doc—”
“The more you try to medicate headaches, the more headaches you get. Analgesics dependency is no different from any other dependency.”
He’s not up for a lecture, so he tries to take another route to drag me over my stubbornness. “Then drink some water.”
“I will,” I murmur groggily. “Later.”
“Not later. Now.” He unscrews the cap of the vitamin water while grumbling under his breath that he isn’t dealing with the mess that comes from migraines. “I don’t do piss, shit, or vomit. Those are my limitations. I’d rather clean up a blood bath than my father’s stinky whiskey barfs any day of the week…” He freezes before his face screws up.
He’s so deep in thought it takes me saying his name three times before he finally looks at me. “Was that your first memory of your father since your accident?”
I don’t know a lot about what happened to Ano when he was sixteen, but I know his injuries weren’t caused naturally. Someone struck him hard enough that they cracked his skull in multiple places. He didn’t tell me that. I read it on his online medical record I unearthed when searching for information about Maksim’s years of childhood abuse.
“Ano?” I prompt when he remains quiet.
“Yeah.” He shakes his head like he’d rather get rid of the memory he just unearthed than encourage more like it before he places the open bottle onto the side table I’m using like a bedside table. “You should drink that, and I’m gonna… ah…” He flicks his eyes to the front door of my apartment before focusing on the one behind him. “I’m going to shower.”
“Okay.”
He smiles to assure me he is okay before he makes a beeline for the bathroom. I’m so tired I should be asleep before he turns on the shower, but I’m not. It takes several hours for my exhaustion to pull me under, and even then, it’s cut short by the shrill of an alarm.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
“Eventually, the long hours, lagging sleep schedule, and massive student loans will be worth it, right?” An interim doctor I’ve not yet met slumps onto the bench wedged between lockers before she carefully commences peeling off her stiletto. “And the blisters. We can’t forget the blisters.”
I hiss with her when the removal of her shoe unearths a massive blister. She’s either never worn high heels while working or forgot to run her new shoes in before undertaking a double shift.
“Here. This will help.” She stares at me peculiarly when I hand her a condom. “Condoms have many uses that don’t involve the prevention of STIs and unwanted pregnancies.”
She stares at the foil disc for a few seconds before seeking instructions.
“You just slip it over your foot.”
“Over my entire foot?”
Her shock is understandable. Guys often pretend they can’t wear a condom because their penis is too big. They’re lying. You can wear a condom as a knee-high sock if latex is your jam.
When I nod, the intern I believe took my position on the surgical rotation last week twists her lips. “Interesting.”
“The latex will stop any nasties from getting in the wound when your blister pops, and its natural lubricant will eliminate the rubbing that’s causing the discomfort.”