"We haven't dated long enough for me to love him," I say, deciding it must be true. It's the only thing that makes logical sense.
"Are you gonna get married?"
"We have to be in love first before we think about that."
"Emily." A woman appears at the door. She's short, with petite features, dark hair, and big brown eyes. She looks just like Emily. Must be her mom. "We have to get going."
Emily stands up and hugs me. "I have to go."
Her mom walks up to us. "She has a dentist appointment." She smiles. "I'm Rhonda, Emily's mom. I'm guessing you're Amber?"
"Yeah. Nice to meet you." I stand up and shake her hand.
"She talks about you all the time."
"Amber has a boyfriend," Emily says to her mom. "They might get married but only if they're in love."
I laugh. "We just started dating," I tell her mom. "Marriage is a long ways off."
"But they should get married because he's Prince Charming and Amber's a princess."
"I am?"
She nods. "We both are." She looks at her mom. "I gotta go potty."
"Okay, go ahead. I'll wait here."
Emily runs off to the bathroom.
"So how's the reading going?" her mom asks. "Her teacher said she's still struggling."
"She is. She has trouble concentrating. She can't stay focused. I think it's because she's frustrated." I want to suggest Emily be tested for dyslexia but I don't know if it's my place to do so. But then I think of what Dylan's mom said about how much better Dylan did in school once he was diagnosed so I decide to just ask her. "Have you ever had Emily tested for dyslexia?"
"No. Why?" Rhonda's brows draw together and I can't tell if she's mad at me for suggesting it or concerned that her daughter has it.
"My boyfriend is dyslexic and his mom said he really struggled when he was first learning to read. He couldn't focus and he got easily frustrated, much like Emily. But once they figured out the issue, things were a lot better. His grades improved, and now it's like you wouldn't even know that he has it. In fact, I didn't know until just last week."
"I hadn't considered she might have a learning disability." Rhonda sounds concerned, not angry, so at least she's not mad at me for bringing it up. "I would've thought if she did have some kind of issue, her teachers would know."
"They might just think she has trouble concentrating or can't sit still long enough to read. I don't know. I was only suggesting that maybe you look into it. I could be completely off base but I've been working with Emily all semester and nothing has changed, so maybe this is why."
Rhonda nods. "I'm glad you said something. I hadn't even thought about that, but maybe that IS what's causing her to struggle. I'll talk to her teacher about it. So as for your boyfriend, how's he doing now? As an adult?"
"He's doing great. He's in college and he's in a band and writes his own music and lyrics. He said he has to work a little harder than other people but he's used to it now so he doesn't think anything of it. I mentioned Emily to him and he said if you find out she's dyslexic, he'd be happy to talk to her. Let her know she's not alone."
She smiles. "Sounds like a nice young man."
"Yeah, he is."
Emily comes running back in the room and up to her mom. She holds her hands up. "There's no towels."
"They must be out. We'll tell your teacher. For now, just wave your hands around until they're dry."
"Okay." She does a little dance as she waves her hands in the air.
"We'll see you later," her mom says.
"Yeah, bye."
I hope she's able to get Emily tested. She's such a sweet little girl and I know she wants to be able to read.
"I talked to Emily's mom," I say to Dylan when I get to work. He always arrives earlier than me because he comes straight from class and the hospital isn't that far from his campus.
"How'd it go?"
"Good. Her mom thought it was a good idea to get Emily tested. She's going to talk to her teacher." I sit at my desk and wake up the computer. "I told her about you. I hope that's okay."
"It's fine. I told you I'm not ashamed or embarrassed by it. I just learn differently than other people. It's not a big deal."
I smile at him. "Emily kept asking about you. She said she knew I had a boyfriend because I kept smiling. She calls you Prince Charming."
He chuckles. "I don't know if I'm that charming but I'll take the title. What did you tell her about me?"
"That you write me letters. She thought I meant that you write out the alphabet for me, like practicing your letters. She didn't know about the other type of letter so I had to explain it. Then she wanted to know what I wrote. She suggested I tell you you're cute and that I love you." I laugh, but am a little nervous I mentioned the love part.
"You should take her suggestion and write that in your next letter."
"I think I've already told you you're cute."
"I don't think you have. And even if you did, I'd like it in writing."
"Okay," I say, not addressing the love part of the letter. I don't think either one of us is ready to discuss that.
Nosy Mary walks up to our desks. "Donna is sick today so she asked me to supervise you two." She says it like she's our babysitter.
"I think we're good." Dylan gives her a big, wide smile. "Donna gave us enough work to keep us busy for the next few days."
"What are you working on?" she asks in a tone that says she's testing him to see if he's lying.
"We have to check in with everyone who's working on the event, including the in-house departments, like janitorial and foodservice. Would you like to see the spreadsheet of the people we need to contact?"
"No." She lifts her nose up in the air. "Just don't be causing any trouble."
Trouble? We're not kids. We're not going to cause trouble. Does she know about us sneaking around? Maybe she does. Maybe that's why she's acting so odd. But even so, why does she care?
"We'll be on our best behavior," Dylan replies, giving her another smile.
She walks back to her desk.
Later, we go down to the cafeteria to talk to the catering manager who's doing the desserts for the event.
When we're done and walking back, Dylan says, "Do you think Mary's following us? Or maybe she has cameras watching us."
I laugh. "I wouldn't put it past her. The woman is nuts. I don't know why she cares what we do. We're interns. It's not like we'll be working here forever. In a few months, she'll never have to see us again."
We're approaching the children's wing and I spot Liza by the nurses' desk. Since meeting for coffee, we've been talking on the phone and making plans for a girls' night with Ivy, her sister, and Kira. I didn't know Liza was working today. She usually works nights.
"Let's go say hi to Liza," I say to Dylan.
"You sure? I don't think Mary would approve of that," he says in a kidding tone.
"All the more reason to do it."
His hand brushes mine as we walk. "Listen to you, you little rebel."
"I'm just tired of her being so nosy. She needs to mind her own business."
I stop walking when I see a guy walk up to Liza. From his lab coat and stethoscope, I'm assuming he's one of the doctors. But he's young, probably just finished his residency. He's smiling at Liza, like really smiling, as if he's not asking her a work-related question.
"Wait," I say, holding back Dylan. "I think that guy's asking her out."
"The doctor?"
"Yeah. See how he's smiling and angling his body toward her? He's definitely asking her out."
"I think he's just talking to her."
"No, it's more than that. I can tell."
"So we're not going to go say hi?"
"Just wait a minute."
Liza nods and says something to the guy, then he walks away.
"Okay, let's go." I grab Dylan's sleeve and we walk up to Liza.
"Hey, guys," she says. "What are you doing here?"
"
We're on our way back to the office. We were at the cafeteria for a meeting. So um..." I glance around to make sure he's gone. "Who's the guy?"
"Andrew. He goes by Drew. I mean, Dr. Hamilton."
"Did he ask you out?"
"Yeah. For dinner tonight."
"I told you," I say to Dylan. He just shrugs. I turn back to Liza. "Did he just start here? I've never seen him."
"Yeah, he's new. We went out last night. Tonight will be our second date."
"So you like him?"
"Yeah, but I'm a little worried about dating someone at work. I always said I wouldn't do that."
"What department does he work in?"
"Internal medicine, in the clinic on the other wing of the hospital."
"He's really hot."
"Hey!" Dylan pokes my arm.
"I'm just making a comment." I lean over to him and lower my voice. "You're way hotter."
Liza laughs. "Guys, I gotta go but it was good seeing you."
"Yeah, bye."
Dylan and I head back to the elevators. There's a long line of people waiting to get on, including some in wheelchairs.
"Let's take the stairs," he says.
I follow him into the empty stairwell and as soon as the door closes behind us, he grabs me around the waist and kisses me. I get that rush of adrenaline I get every time he does something like this when we're at work.
"Dylan stop," I say. "We'll get caught."
"I can't help it. I haven't kissed you since yesterday."
I kiss him back, losing any resolve I had to not do this. But then the door opens from the floor above and we break apart. From her clomping shoes, I know it's Mary. She always wears these black loafers that don't fit her feet right and make a lot of noise.
Dylan must also recognize her shoes because he loudly says, "We should ask Mary. She really knows what she's doing. We could learn a lot from her."
As we walk up the stairs, I try to hold in my laughter at his little show. We run right into Mary, who eyes us, suspiciously.
"Mary, we were just talking about you," Dylan says. "If you have some time, we'd like your input on the radio ads. We're working on those later this week."
"Certainly." She smiles at him. His compliments won her over. "I'll be back to the office in a few minutes."
"Sounds good."
She walks past us but then turns back. "You don't normally take the stairs."
How would she know that? Maybe she IS watching us.
"There was a big line at the elevator," Dylan says, "so we decided to take the stairs."
We continue up to the next floor and when we're back in the hallway, Dylan says, "That was close."
"Yeah, too close. I swear she's trying to get us fired."
"Just suck up to her. If we win her over, eventually she'll leave us alone." He smiles. "So can I come over tonight?"
"I have to work on a paper for class."
"Then I'll come over later, whenever you're done."
"Okay." I should've told him no so I can get to bed early, but I couldn't make myself do it. I want to be with Dylan.
***
The next few weeks, Dylan and I spend almost every night together. During the week we both have to do homework or study so it's usually late before he comes over. Weekends we have a little more time together but between studying for finals, all my activities, and his gigs with the band, we don't have as much time as we'd like. I'm hoping that'll change next semester. I'm dropping out of some of my campus clubs so that I'll have time for Dylan but also time to start job hunting. I'll graduate next August, which is still a ways off, but I want to start looking for jobs now to see what's out there.
"You'll call me, right?" Dylan asks as we stand by my car.
Finals are over and it's the first day of winter break. Kira and I are driving home to Michigan together.
"Of course I'll call you." I give him a hug. "I wouldn't go all that time without calling you."
"I meant from the road. I want you to check in so I know you're safe."
"I will. I promise."
"I'll give you your present when you get back."
"What is it?"
"You'll find out later."
I smile. "Now I'm dying to know."
"Then that'll be a reason for you to hurry back."
"I already want to hurry back. I'm going to miss you."
"I'll miss you too. Three weeks seems like forever." He kisses me. "Have a good time. And Merry Christmas."
"Merry Christmas."
We kiss goodbye until Kira beeps the horn.
"Okay, you guys," she yells from inside the car. "Stop kissing. We have to go."
"I'll see you soon," I say to Dylan.
My heart sinks as I get in the car, knowing I won't see him for weeks.
"You all right?" Kira asks as we're driving away.
"Yeah. It's just hard when you're used to being together all the time and then you're not."
"I know. Thanksgiving was tough when I went home for those few days, but now? Three whole weeks? It's going to seem like forever."
And it does. After just three days of being home, I'm going crazy wanting to see Dylan. We talk on the phone but it's not the same as seeing him in person.
My older sister, Leah, is home for the holidays so at least I have her and Britt to keep me busy so my mind isn't always wandering to Dylan. And I have Kira who lives just a couple miles away. I've been over to her house a few times to watch movies but her younger brothers can get really loud so we usually end up leaving and going for coffee or to the mall.
It's odd but my parents haven't fought since I got here. Britt said they didn't fight the week before either. Guess they're giving each other the silent treatment. I'm sure a fight will blow up at Christmas dinner, like it always does.
But two days later, which is Christmas day, we make it all the way through dessert without my parents even raising their voices. And they didn't fight when we opened presents this morning. Normally, my dad would yell at my mom for spending too much and my mom would yell at him for leaving wrapping paper and bows all over the floor.
As we finish our pie, Leah, Britt, and I keep looking at each other across the table like something's wrong. Why aren't our parents fighting? They always fight.
"Have you talked to Dylan yet?" my mom asks as she sips her coffee.
"Yeah, I talked to him this morning, remember? I told you how he got those goofy socks from his mom."
"Yes, that's right. And what did you get him?"
"Guitar picks. They're these special picks he really wanted."
Dylan loved my gift. He said it was the best gift he ever got.
"How about that little girl you read to?" my mom asks. "Did you get her anything?"
"Yeah, I got her a princess book. She's really into princesses."
Emily got tested a few weeks ago and it turns out she does have dyslexia. Her mom called and thanked me for suggesting Emily get tested but she should really thank Dylan's mom. I wouldn't have even suspected that was the problem if his mom hadn't brought it up.
"Okay, what's going on?" Britt asks, looking at my mom, then my dad.
My mom answers. "What do you mean?"
"Something's going on with you and Dad. You two are acting strange."
My mom sighs. "It's not the time."
"Not the time to what?" Leah asks, sounding nervous.
I feel nervous too. Something's definitely going on.
"Do you guys have something to tell us?" I ask my parents.
My mom fakes a smile. "We will tomorrow. Today is Christmas. Let's just enjoy our time together."
"Judy, just tell them," my dad says. "They know something's up and you're torturing them by making them wait."
"I'M torturing them?" She raises her voice. "It's always me, isn't it? Never you."
Here we go. Let the fight begin.
But instead, my father calmly says, "Your mother and I are getting divorced."
My sist
ers and I all stare at him, jaws dropped. We always knew it was possible, but after so many years of them fighting and not breaking up, we'd kind of given up on the idea that they'd ever divorce.
"You're divorcing?" Britt's eyes tear up, her lip quivering. She hates their fighting but I know she's not ready for them to divorce. Living here at home, this will mean big changes for her.
"We aren't selling the house," my mom says to Britt. "Your father is moving out but I'll stay here with you. He's getting a place across town. You can go visit him whenever you'd like."
"No!" She starts crying. "You can't break up!" She gets up and runs off to her room.
"I'll talk to her," Leah says, hurrying off to Britt's room.
I'm left there with my parents, feeling awkward, not sure what to say or what to think. Ever since they started growing apart and fighting all the time, I thought it'd be best if they divorced. But now that it's happening, I don't like it. I want them to stay together.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Amber
My mom turns to my dad, glaring at him. "I told you we shouldn't have said anything until tomorrow."
"What difference would it make? They had to be told."
"Yes, but now you've ruined their Christmas."
"They knew this was coming. It's not a surprise."
"Still. I wanted them to have a nice Christmas." My mom covers her face with her hands and breaks down crying.
My dad sighs and gets up from the table. I assume he's going to comfort her but instead he just walks away. I guess when you're divorcing, you no longer care that the person you once loved is hurting, crying right in front of you.
"Mom." I race over to her, sitting beside her.
She hugs me. "I'm sorry, honey. I didn't want to tell you girls today. I didn't want it ruining your holiday."
"It's okay. Don't worry about it." I pull back. "When did you guys decide this?"
"A week ago. Your father had had enough so he went and found an apartment. He's been staying there all week. We just pretended he's been here in the house for Britt's sake. He'd come over early, before she woke up, so she wouldn't suspect anything. I suppose we could've told her, but she gets so excited about the holidays and we didn't want to ruin it for her. Plus we wanted to wait until all three of you were home so we could tell you together." She glances down the hall. "I need to go talk to her."
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