tourism, Old Town boasted a number of great museums and restaurants. “It’s a gorgeous day, isn’t it?” he asked, trying to fill the silence that seemed to have settled between them.
“Yes. I love days like this. Clear blue skies, not too hot, and little humidity. Perfect to me.” She looked up at the sky overhead and as she leaned back against the seat, the scar he had noticed yesterday appeared above her collar.
“Well, if the weather holds, maybe we can have lunch al fresco .” He used to spend a lot of time outside hiking or biking, but his life of late hadn’t allowed much time for recreation. It was simpler if he just worked.
“You sound so Continental when you say that,” Jeannine said, and gave a quick laugh. “I’ve never been out of the States, but I want to someday. I have a passport, but I’ve never used it. That’s so lame, isn’t it?”
“Not even on spring break from college?” he asked, truly surprised. Everyone he knew traveled. As a child he’d traveled to Greece three times before he’d been ten years old.
“Nope. Back then I was painfully shy and didn’t know what I really wanted out of life.” She turned toward him, her face serious.
“That’s what college is for, figuring out who you are and what you want.” He shook his head, rememberinghis own recklessness as a student. Those days were long gone and frivolity not something that was a part of his life any longer.
“My college experience was a little more conservative than that.”
“So do you know now who you are and what you want out of life?” he asked.
Jeannine thought for a moment. “Sometimes I do and some days I just don’t.”
“You need to go back to college, then,” Miklo said with a laugh.
“Hey!” Jeannine said. “That’s not fair. Some people don’t know what they want to be when they grow up until they’re, like, thirty. I suppose you have it all figured out, then, Dr. Kyriakides?”
Sobering, Miklo negotiated the narrow streets until he found the parking lot by the museum. “I thought I had once but, like you, some days I’m not so sure.” He snorted and turned the engine off. “Maybe I need to go back to college, too.” Without another word he opened the car door, came around and opened her door for her.
“Let’s go see some dinosaurs,” she said, and smiled up at him.
“Good plan,” Miklo said, and walked silently beside her.
They continued without speaking again until they made their way through the first exhibit of dinosaurs. They gazed through the glass at a museum worker who was tediously cleaning a dinosaur fossil by removing the rock it was encased in, one speck of dirt at a time. Longmoments passed as other museum-goers stopped to watch the work being done. The people made comments, and drifted away to other areas of the museum.
“Any lingering issues from yesterday?” he asked as they moved to the next exhibit.
“Well, I’m pretty certain I don’t want to be a surgeon, like you,” she said.
“At least that’s one decision you came to without having to go back to college.”
“See how helpful you are?”
“Seriously, Jeannine. If you have anything you’d like to talk about, I’ll try to help.” He sighed and guilt crashed over him. “I had no idea you’d been through a recent hospitalization. If I had I could have—”
“It’s okay, Miklo.” She touched his arm and the warmth of her hand was gentle on his skin. Instead of comforting her, she offered it to him with a small smile. “I learned a lot yesterday. I’ve come to realize that learning opportunities are not always as easy and pleasant as yesterday was.”
“If I had just known…” But he had been thinking of his patient, not himself, not the staff. The same way he’d been thinking of his patients and not his family the night they had died. God! He was so stupid sometimes, so focused, so…blind.
“Actually, it was a good thing for me to do. I didn’t have time to think about
“Yes. I love days like this. Clear blue skies, not too hot, and little humidity. Perfect to me.” She looked up at the sky overhead and as she leaned back against the seat, the scar he had noticed yesterday appeared above her collar.
“Well, if the weather holds, maybe we can have lunch al fresco .” He used to spend a lot of time outside hiking or biking, but his life of late hadn’t allowed much time for recreation. It was simpler if he just worked.
“You sound so Continental when you say that,” Jeannine said, and gave a quick laugh. “I’ve never been out of the States, but I want to someday. I have a passport, but I’ve never used it. That’s so lame, isn’t it?”
“Not even on spring break from college?” he asked, truly surprised. Everyone he knew traveled. As a child he’d traveled to Greece three times before he’d been ten years old.
“Nope. Back then I was painfully shy and didn’t know what I really wanted out of life.” She turned toward him, her face serious.
“That’s what college is for, figuring out who you are and what you want.” He shook his head, rememberinghis own recklessness as a student. Those days were long gone and frivolity not something that was a part of his life any longer.
“My college experience was a little more conservative than that.”
“So do you know now who you are and what you want out of life?” he asked.
Jeannine thought for a moment. “Sometimes I do and some days I just don’t.”
“You need to go back to college, then,” Miklo said with a laugh.
“Hey!” Jeannine said. “That’s not fair. Some people don’t know what they want to be when they grow up until they’re, like, thirty. I suppose you have it all figured out, then, Dr. Kyriakides?”
Sobering, Miklo negotiated the narrow streets until he found the parking lot by the museum. “I thought I had once but, like you, some days I’m not so sure.” He snorted and turned the engine off. “Maybe I need to go back to college, too.” Without another word he opened the car door, came around and opened her door for her.
“Let’s go see some dinosaurs,” she said, and smiled up at him.
“Good plan,” Miklo said, and walked silently beside her.
They continued without speaking again until they made their way through the first exhibit of dinosaurs. They gazed through the glass at a museum worker who was tediously cleaning a dinosaur fossil by removing the rock it was encased in, one speck of dirt at a time. Longmoments passed as other museum-goers stopped to watch the work being done. The people made comments, and drifted away to other areas of the museum.
“Any lingering issues from yesterday?” he asked as they moved to the next exhibit.
“Well, I’m pretty certain I don’t want to be a surgeon, like you,” she said.
“At least that’s one decision you came to without having to go back to college.”
“See how helpful you are?”
“Seriously, Jeannine. If you have anything you’d like to talk about, I’ll try to help.” He sighed and guilt crashed over him. “I had no idea you’d been through a recent hospitalization. If I had I could have—”
“It’s okay, Miklo.” She touched his arm and the warmth of her hand was gentle on his skin. Instead of comforting her, she offered it to him with a small smile. “I learned a lot yesterday. I’ve come to realize that learning opportunities are not always as easy and pleasant as yesterday was.”
“If I had just known…” But he had been thinking of his patient, not himself, not the staff. The same way he’d been thinking of his patients and not his family the night they had died. God! He was so stupid sometimes, so focused, so…blind.
“Actually, it was a good thing for me to do. I didn’t have time to think about
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