~Joan~
“That’s… great news,” I muttered, downing the last drop of my lemon juice. Rhoda gave a small smile from where she sat opposite me. We had been trying to rebuild our relationship, starting from scratch, piecing together the trust we had both broken.
“You really want him to move in with you?” I asked, watching as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Yeah? I don’t know. But I want him closer,” she said, her voice unsure. I pursed my lips and glanced around the small restaurant. She had texted me earlier, asking to meet after work, and while I would have preferred to spend time with Aaron, fixing things with her was just as important. Even though Aaron acted like our strained relationship didn’t affect him, I knew better.
“Should I tell him?” I asked, tapping my fingers lightly against my empty glass. She pressed her lips together into a thin line.
“He would overreact, but I think it’s better to let him know Lucas is moving in with me,” she said. I nodded, staring at the faint traces of condensation left on my glass.
“I want to tell him myself,” she added, and I straightened up slightly. Our eyes met for a brief moment before we both looked away. I hummed.
“Yeah, sure. He’s your brother, after all,” I muttered. She gave me another small, almost hesitant smile.
Silence settled between us. The conversation from the other tables and the clinking of silverware against plates filled the space where words should have been. Moments like this made me crave something stronger than lemonade, but drinking wasn’t an option-not when I was feeling this off.
“You sure you don’t want a drink?” Rhoda asked, raising an eyebrow as she nodded toward my empty glass.
I lifted it slightly. “This is a drink,” I said.
She rolled her eyes. “Not that. Come on, that’s not a real drink.”
I chuckled. “Yeah, it’s not. But I can’t drink right now.”
She nodded, then suddenly straightened in her seat, eyes wide. “Wait-you can’t drink alcohol?”
I nodded, and she clasped her hands over her mouth.
“It’s not what you’re thinking,” I muttered, shaking my head, but she just kept staring at me.
I huffed a laugh and shoved her shoulder. “Seriously, it’s not what you’re thinking, okay? I just haven’t been feeling great, and I don’t want to drink until I figure out what’s wrong.”
She let out a small “Oh,” before lowering her hands. “You’re going to see a doctor? Do you think it’s an aftereffect from the surgery?” Her tone was laced with concern.
I shook my head. “It’s been over a month since I was discharged. I don’t think so, but there’s no harm in checking.”
She sighed. “Should I go with you to the hospital?”
I shook my head again. Nope. I hadn’t even told Aaron I was going. The Thompsons had a habit of overreacting-good news, bad news, it didn’t matter. Everything was a big deal to them.
After finishing up with Rhoda, I headed to the hospital where I had been admitted before. The doctor from last time seemed nice. Hopefully, I’d get to see him again instead of some uptight doctor with no patience.
“Hi, I’m here to see a doctor,” I said to the nurse at the reception desk. She barely looked up from her computer.
“As a friend or a patient?”
“Patient.”
She shook her head. “There’s a long list of patients waiting. You’ll have to wait in the hallway and take a number. When it’s your turn, you can go in to see the doctor.”
I nodded, muttering a small “thank you” before making my way to the waiting room.
As I walked, my phone rang. Digging it out of my bag, I glanced at the caller ID-Aaron.
“Hey,” I muttered after picking up.
There was some fuzziness in the background before his voice came through. “Hey.”
At the sound of his voice, my stomach did a weird little flip. I turned the corner into the hallway and came to an abrupt stop. What the hell? The nurse wasn’t kidding about the wait. The line of people stretched further than I had the patience for. I already felt exhausted, and there was no way I could sit that long. I might as well go home.
“Are you home yet?” Aaron asked.
I sighed. “No. I met with Rhoda, but I had to stop somewhere. I’m heading home now.” I tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “What about you? Are you home?”
From the brief pause, I could tell he wasn’t.
“No. I’ll be leaving the office later than usual, so you don’t have to wait up for me.”
I frowned. “Is something wrong?”
He hummed. “No. Everything’s great. Call me when you get home.”
I hesitated for a moment, still unsure. “Alright.”
“I love you, baby,” he added, and I smiled shyly, even though he couldn’t see me. No matter how many times he said it, it always made my heart flutter.
He hung up, and I slipped my phone back into my bag. Turning to leave, I took a step forward-and ran right into someone.
A small groan escaped me as my head suddenly felt heavier, my vision spinning. A hand grabbed my arm, stopping me from face-planting onto the cold hospital floor.
“Miss, are you okay?” A deep voice asked.
I blinked, trying to focus, but my head felt like it was floating.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m good,” I muttered, pressing a hand to my forehead. A wave of heat rushed through me. Oh boy. I was burning up.
“Do you think you can walk? You don’t look or sound okay. I should check you up,” the man said.
I blinked again, trying to make out his face. Slowly, recognition set in.
“Doctor Jax?” I mumbled.
His brows knit together for a second before his expression cleared. “Joan Madison, right?”
I nodded, but even that small movement made my head throb.
“Come on. I’ll check you out,” he said, leading me past the long line of waiting patients and into one of the rooms.
He had me lie down on one of the beds before he checked my pulse and temperature.
“I’m sorry for making you skip the line of patients,” I muttered as he lifted one of my eyelids to check my pupils.
“It’s okay. Looking after patients is our priority,” he said, his brows furrowing slightly.
“I’ll need to take a blood sample for testing,” he added, moving toward his desk.
My stomach clenched. “Is everything okay?”
He glanced back at me with a polite smile. “Hopefully. We won’t know for sure until the test results come back.”
I pressed my lips together as unease settled in my chest. My heart was beating too fast. Why did this feel so much bigger than a minor illness?
He collected my blood sample and called a nurse to send it to the lab.
“How long will it take?” I asked as the nurse left.
“Tomorrow. You’ll need to come back then for the results.”
I nodded, thanking him before grabbing my bag and heading home-Aaron’s home, though at this point, it felt safe to just call it home.
As I waved down a cab, an uneasy feeling settled in my gut. Something told me my life was about to change. Whether for better or worse… I wasn’t sure.