A look of shock flashes across Mike's face, as if he can't believe what's coming out of my mouth. Then he turns on the charm. "Saylor, baby, don't listen to her. She's upset because I dumped her."
My jaw drops. "Should I call Paige down here? Or maybe I should just take a survey on campus?"
Saylor stands up. "Thanks, Sophie," she says, then turns to Mike. "Sorry, you're not worth this kind of drama. And I believe Sophie over you anyway. Later."
Mike turns to me as Saylor takes off with rage in his eyes. "You bitch."
"Grow up," I retort and leave him to fume by himself.
I pass the elevators for the stairs. I’d rather jog up stairs in these heels than spend another minute in the lobby with Mike. I hope that Jean is out. I want to sulk in peace and quiet. I shove open the stairwell door and start jogging up the steps, adrenaline from my confrontation with Mike fueling me. I hear the stairwell door swing open again as I’m rounding the third floor landing and look down to see Mike taking the stairs two at a time.
“Go away, Mike!” I shout behind me and increase my pace.
“I just want you to listen to me, Sophie.”
“I don’t think so!” My heart is racing so fast I'm afraid I'm going to black out. The stairwells are not used that often and I really do not want to be alone with him. I contemplate exiting onto a lower floor in the hopes of not being stuck alone with Mike, but before I can, I trip over my heels and then I'm falling.
Chapter 30
Luke's thumb is rubbing back and forth across the back of my hand. It's nice. I love it when he does that. I turn my head towards him and open my eyes.
"Sophie?"
Wait. We're not at Luke's and Luke is not in bed with me. He's sitting next to the bed, wearing scrubs. I blink my eyes as I piece together that I'm in a hospital. I remember fighting with Mike, and then nothing.
"Sophie, how do you feel?" It's Luke. He's standing now, trying to look into my eyes. I shut them.
"It's too bright," I complain. "Where am I?"
"You're at Baldwin Memorial," Luke says, as he reaches over and hits a switch on the wall, dimming the lights. A moment after that the bed is moving, adjusting me so that I'm sitting up.
"Stop, you're annoying me. I'm sleeping."
"You're awake and I need to check your pupils."
"You're a gynecologist."
"I can give you a pelvic when we're done if you like," he replies. "Open your eyes."
I do, and I notice he looks exhausted. He's got a five o'clock shadow and his eyes are red. I love the scrubs though. I've seen him in a lab coat, but never scrubs.
"My head hurts," I tell him.
"I know. Follow my finger," he says, holding it up and moving it left and right, then up and down while I follow with my eyes.
"How long was I asleep?" I ask.
"It's Sunday morning."
"I slept all night?"
"You were unconscious, not asleep, Sophie," he says sharply as he wraps a blood-pressure cuff around my upper arm and inflates it, before unwrapping a stethoscope from around his neck. He places it on my arm and listens as the air is released from the cuff while keeping an eye on his watch. The stethoscope is turning me on so I guess I'm feeling better.
"Why is my ankle wrapped?" I say, catching sight of my leg.
"It's not broken, just sprained," he assures me. "We did an X-ray when you were brought in."
A nurse comes into the room then, moving quickly, her sneakers squeaking across the linoleum floors.
"Good morning, Sophie, we've been waiting for you to wake up. I'm Stacy, I'll be your nurse today. I need to get your vitals."
"I already did," Luke interrupts her, and takes the chart from her hands, writes something in it and hands it back to her.
Stacy looks shocked, and like she might disagree, but decides better of it. "Page me if you need anything, Dr. Miller."
"Bring me the release paperwork, please."
She pauses midstep on her way out the door. "I think Dr. Kallam wanted to see the patient first, Dr. Miller."
"Tell Dr. Kallam I'll have the patient follow up next week."
I look between them, sensing tension, but unsure of what's going on. The nurse leaves without another word and Luke turns his attention back to me.
"What do you remember?"
"I, uh…" I stall. What do I remember? "I remember you left the party with Gina."
"Really, Sophie?" He turns around and walks over to the window and stares at the shitty view from my room for a minute before turning back to me and crossing his arms across his chest. "As fascinating as your childish assumptions are, I’m more interested in how you ended up unconscious in the stairwell of your dorm."
I raise my hand and rub it over the back of my head where it made contact with something—a railing, the floor, I don't know. "He was angry at me," I begin before Luke cuts me off.
"Who was angry?"
"My ex-boyfriend, Mike. He was in the lobby when I got back to the dorm flirting with a girl who lives in my building. I interrupted them and told her what kind of guy he is. He didn't appreciate the interruption."
"Go on," Luke prods.
"I was jogging up the steps, in my heels. That’s all I remember.”
“Did he touch you?” Luke’s face is calm but his voice betrays him.
“No.” I shake my head. “No. He was a floor or two behind me. I think I tripped. I should have taken the heels off.”
The door swings open then and a tall blonde wearing a lab coat strides in with a chart in her hands. "Dr. Miller, I hear you're trying to release my patient without me?"
Luke looks like he's had enough of this day and the sun hasn't even finished rising. "Last I checked you reported to me, Dr. Kallam."
"My patient," she retorts.
"Kristi," he says warningly.
"Luke," she replies, seemingly unfazed by his ire.
They have a silent battle then, over what I do not know.
"Sophie, how are you feeling?" This is directed at me from Dr. Kallam.
"I think I'm okay," I respond. "I'd really like to leave," I add, in case I have any say in this standoff.
My jaw drops. "Should I call Paige down here? Or maybe I should just take a survey on campus?"
Saylor stands up. "Thanks, Sophie," she says, then turns to Mike. "Sorry, you're not worth this kind of drama. And I believe Sophie over you anyway. Later."
Mike turns to me as Saylor takes off with rage in his eyes. "You bitch."
"Grow up," I retort and leave him to fume by himself.
I pass the elevators for the stairs. I’d rather jog up stairs in these heels than spend another minute in the lobby with Mike. I hope that Jean is out. I want to sulk in peace and quiet. I shove open the stairwell door and start jogging up the steps, adrenaline from my confrontation with Mike fueling me. I hear the stairwell door swing open again as I’m rounding the third floor landing and look down to see Mike taking the stairs two at a time.
“Go away, Mike!” I shout behind me and increase my pace.
“I just want you to listen to me, Sophie.”
“I don’t think so!” My heart is racing so fast I'm afraid I'm going to black out. The stairwells are not used that often and I really do not want to be alone with him. I contemplate exiting onto a lower floor in the hopes of not being stuck alone with Mike, but before I can, I trip over my heels and then I'm falling.
Chapter 30
Luke's thumb is rubbing back and forth across the back of my hand. It's nice. I love it when he does that. I turn my head towards him and open my eyes.
"Sophie?"
Wait. We're not at Luke's and Luke is not in bed with me. He's sitting next to the bed, wearing scrubs. I blink my eyes as I piece together that I'm in a hospital. I remember fighting with Mike, and then nothing.
"Sophie, how do you feel?" It's Luke. He's standing now, trying to look into my eyes. I shut them.
"It's too bright," I complain. "Where am I?"
"You're at Baldwin Memorial," Luke says, as he reaches over and hits a switch on the wall, dimming the lights. A moment after that the bed is moving, adjusting me so that I'm sitting up.
"Stop, you're annoying me. I'm sleeping."
"You're awake and I need to check your pupils."
"You're a gynecologist."
"I can give you a pelvic when we're done if you like," he replies. "Open your eyes."
I do, and I notice he looks exhausted. He's got a five o'clock shadow and his eyes are red. I love the scrubs though. I've seen him in a lab coat, but never scrubs.
"My head hurts," I tell him.
"I know. Follow my finger," he says, holding it up and moving it left and right, then up and down while I follow with my eyes.
"How long was I asleep?" I ask.
"It's Sunday morning."
"I slept all night?"
"You were unconscious, not asleep, Sophie," he says sharply as he wraps a blood-pressure cuff around my upper arm and inflates it, before unwrapping a stethoscope from around his neck. He places it on my arm and listens as the air is released from the cuff while keeping an eye on his watch. The stethoscope is turning me on so I guess I'm feeling better.
"Why is my ankle wrapped?" I say, catching sight of my leg.
"It's not broken, just sprained," he assures me. "We did an X-ray when you were brought in."
A nurse comes into the room then, moving quickly, her sneakers squeaking across the linoleum floors.
"Good morning, Sophie, we've been waiting for you to wake up. I'm Stacy, I'll be your nurse today. I need to get your vitals."
"I already did," Luke interrupts her, and takes the chart from her hands, writes something in it and hands it back to her.
Stacy looks shocked, and like she might disagree, but decides better of it. "Page me if you need anything, Dr. Miller."
"Bring me the release paperwork, please."
She pauses midstep on her way out the door. "I think Dr. Kallam wanted to see the patient first, Dr. Miller."
"Tell Dr. Kallam I'll have the patient follow up next week."
I look between them, sensing tension, but unsure of what's going on. The nurse leaves without another word and Luke turns his attention back to me.
"What do you remember?"
"I, uh…" I stall. What do I remember? "I remember you left the party with Gina."
"Really, Sophie?" He turns around and walks over to the window and stares at the shitty view from my room for a minute before turning back to me and crossing his arms across his chest. "As fascinating as your childish assumptions are, I’m more interested in how you ended up unconscious in the stairwell of your dorm."
I raise my hand and rub it over the back of my head where it made contact with something—a railing, the floor, I don't know. "He was angry at me," I begin before Luke cuts me off.
"Who was angry?"
"My ex-boyfriend, Mike. He was in the lobby when I got back to the dorm flirting with a girl who lives in my building. I interrupted them and told her what kind of guy he is. He didn't appreciate the interruption."
"Go on," Luke prods.
"I was jogging up the steps, in my heels. That’s all I remember.”
“Did he touch you?” Luke’s face is calm but his voice betrays him.
“No.” I shake my head. “No. He was a floor or two behind me. I think I tripped. I should have taken the heels off.”
The door swings open then and a tall blonde wearing a lab coat strides in with a chart in her hands. "Dr. Miller, I hear you're trying to release my patient without me?"
Luke looks like he's had enough of this day and the sun hasn't even finished rising. "Last I checked you reported to me, Dr. Kallam."
"My patient," she retorts.
"Kristi," he says warningly.
"Luke," she replies, seemingly unfazed by his ire.
They have a silent battle then, over what I do not know.
"Sophie, how are you feeling?" This is directed at me from Dr. Kallam.
"I think I'm okay," I respond. "I'd really like to leave," I add, in case I have any say in this standoff.
