longer, but the hollowness in my stomach made me change my mind. I was pretty sure that the ache I was feeling had nothing to do with my lack of nourishment and everything to do with my longing for Erik.
“Tomorrow night?” she asked hopefully.
“Of course, I’ll be over after dinner.” I smiled at her reassuringly. I gave Penny one last hug before making my return trip through the glass doors and down the sterile white hallway.
Chapter Five
The evening had grown cool and damp, the moon just a sliver overhead but clearly visible in the cloudless sky. I kept my eyes titled upwards, gazing at the stars as I made my way to Medical. It was late and the receptionist was long gone. I wound through the corridors and found Dr. Thistler in her office.
“Hello, Natalia,” she greeted me when I knocked lightly on the open door. “You are late.”
“Sorry, I’ve been busy,” I mumbled. She pursed her thin lips in disapproval. She rose from her desk and gestured for me to sit in an empty chair. I did as I was told and watched as Dr. Thistler opened a cabinet and withdrew several vials. With deft movements, she filled a syringe with my medication. I my sleeve back and rested my arm on her desk. Dr. Thistler bent over me and plunged the tip of the needle into the crook on my elbow.
I sighed. “Thanks.”
“Please come earlier tomorrow,” Dr. Thistler responded. I nodded and scurried out of her office.
The School grounds were deserted. It was past the student’s curfew. I reached the Instructor’s dorm quickly and climbed the three flights of stairs and found my new room. As promised, my bag of clothes sat on the end of a small bed that was covered with crisp white sheets and a thin white blanket. As soon as I laid eyes on the bed, I realized how tired I actually was. This was the longest that I’d managed to stay awake in months, so this shouldn’t have come as a surprise. I wasn’t sure if my perpetual fatigue was a result of my health or extreme boredom.
Rummaging through the bag for something to sleep in, I sent waves of gratitude toward Gretchen when I pulled out a faded gray t-shirt and a pair of navy sweatpants that were devoid of any shape. I quickly shed the workout clothes that I’d been wearing all day, leaving them in a heap on the floor, and exchanged them for the comfortable pajamas that Gretchen had rescued from my room at Elite headquarters.
The sheets were cool and scratchy against my exposed skin. I curled in to a ball, hugging my knees to my chest, trying to conserve body heat. My last conscious thought of the evening was to have Gretchen send a real blanket.
The next morning, I woke before the sun was in the sky and tried in vain to go back to sleep. All of the thoughts and feelings that the alcohol suppressed the day before began swimming to the surface of my mind: the he unease from seeing Donavon, the anger at Mac for making me unknowingly walk into that situation, the pain of reliving the events in Nevada, the frustration from the memories that still eluded me, the longing to see Erik, and the worry that feelings weren’t being reciprocated. After several failed attempts to quiet the scenes playing in my head, I got out of bed and dressed for a run.
I donned the first workout clothes that I found in my bag and gathered my hair into a tight ponytail, then left my room.
Bright stars were still scattered across the ink-colored sky, forming a dazzling map of unexplored territory. The chill in the air brought my senses to life. I inhaled deeply, filling my lungs with the early morning dew that hung in the air, and moisture bathed my face and arms like a cold blanket.
Over the past few months, my weakened condition had caused walking to be an unwelcome chore and jogging to be torture. Now, with my head bursting from the overload of emotions, my atrophied muscles craved the exercise, the physical exertion and pain felt liberating. After only ten minutes, my breathing was labored,
“Tomorrow night?” she asked hopefully.
“Of course, I’ll be over after dinner.” I smiled at her reassuringly. I gave Penny one last hug before making my return trip through the glass doors and down the sterile white hallway.
Chapter Five
The evening had grown cool and damp, the moon just a sliver overhead but clearly visible in the cloudless sky. I kept my eyes titled upwards, gazing at the stars as I made my way to Medical. It was late and the receptionist was long gone. I wound through the corridors and found Dr. Thistler in her office.
“Hello, Natalia,” she greeted me when I knocked lightly on the open door. “You are late.”
“Sorry, I’ve been busy,” I mumbled. She pursed her thin lips in disapproval. She rose from her desk and gestured for me to sit in an empty chair. I did as I was told and watched as Dr. Thistler opened a cabinet and withdrew several vials. With deft movements, she filled a syringe with my medication. I my sleeve back and rested my arm on her desk. Dr. Thistler bent over me and plunged the tip of the needle into the crook on my elbow.
I sighed. “Thanks.”
“Please come earlier tomorrow,” Dr. Thistler responded. I nodded and scurried out of her office.
The School grounds were deserted. It was past the student’s curfew. I reached the Instructor’s dorm quickly and climbed the three flights of stairs and found my new room. As promised, my bag of clothes sat on the end of a small bed that was covered with crisp white sheets and a thin white blanket. As soon as I laid eyes on the bed, I realized how tired I actually was. This was the longest that I’d managed to stay awake in months, so this shouldn’t have come as a surprise. I wasn’t sure if my perpetual fatigue was a result of my health or extreme boredom.
Rummaging through the bag for something to sleep in, I sent waves of gratitude toward Gretchen when I pulled out a faded gray t-shirt and a pair of navy sweatpants that were devoid of any shape. I quickly shed the workout clothes that I’d been wearing all day, leaving them in a heap on the floor, and exchanged them for the comfortable pajamas that Gretchen had rescued from my room at Elite headquarters.
The sheets were cool and scratchy against my exposed skin. I curled in to a ball, hugging my knees to my chest, trying to conserve body heat. My last conscious thought of the evening was to have Gretchen send a real blanket.
The next morning, I woke before the sun was in the sky and tried in vain to go back to sleep. All of the thoughts and feelings that the alcohol suppressed the day before began swimming to the surface of my mind: the he unease from seeing Donavon, the anger at Mac for making me unknowingly walk into that situation, the pain of reliving the events in Nevada, the frustration from the memories that still eluded me, the longing to see Erik, and the worry that feelings weren’t being reciprocated. After several failed attempts to quiet the scenes playing in my head, I got out of bed and dressed for a run.
I donned the first workout clothes that I found in my bag and gathered my hair into a tight ponytail, then left my room.
Bright stars were still scattered across the ink-colored sky, forming a dazzling map of unexplored territory. The chill in the air brought my senses to life. I inhaled deeply, filling my lungs with the early morning dew that hung in the air, and moisture bathed my face and arms like a cold blanket.
Over the past few months, my weakened condition had caused walking to be an unwelcome chore and jogging to be torture. Now, with my head bursting from the overload of emotions, my atrophied muscles craved the exercise, the physical exertion and pain felt liberating. After only ten minutes, my breathing was labored,
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