“So… it’s not so cut and dry?”
“No, dreams never are.”
Nikki tucks a piece of hair behind her ear and sighs, then divulges a secret of her own. "Austin told me he doesn't want to be exclusive."
"Why?" Avery gasps momentarily distracted from the ache in her chest.
"He just said he wasn't ready. Whatever,” Nikki said, rolling her eyes. “He's almost thirty. I think he's scared."
"I'm so sorry, Nikki. Logan said he acted differently with you."
"Oh, I know. I'm pretty observant. Austin doesn't realize that I know how he usually is and he wasn't like that with me. So I decided I'm going to have a broken heart day. Want to join me?"
Wiping her nose, Avery nods her head in agreement.
"Yes, please."
Helping her from the bed, Nikki mumbles seemingly to herself as she helps her make the bed.
"You need to tell him, Avery. He deserves to know."
Avery doesn't respond. Instead, she follows Nikki to the living room and plants herself on the couch for the next five hours, indulging herself in chocolate cake and chick flicks.
TWO WEEKS PASS AND Avery tries to find a moment at work to speak to Logan, though, in all honesty, she hasn’t tried very hard. She can tell he has been avoiding her, seemingly buried under work when she would be just about to ask for a minute of his time… but she knew better. She would have avoided her too, she supposes, especially with the way she led him on and then ended things.
As she stands in the hall, contemplating her next move and making notations in a patient record, Dr. Fields pulls her aside and asks her how she thinks the job is going. Avery discloses to him that she’s happy, but she knows he is afraid she may up and go at any moment. It's not like she doesn't have the income to do so if she wanted. But what he doesn’t realize is that she doesn't want the money, though she has had a few ideas regarding how to use it. Trying to ease Dr. Fields’ apprehension, Avery brings forth her thoughts.
"Dr. Fields, is there a reason no one has pursued opening a pediatric clinic in the town? I mean, with the way it's growing, it seems like a good solution for your influx of patients."
"We've looked into it, but the startup money is a bit more than we can invest right now. We even have a building in mind that is due to be torn do
wn soon - an old school about two blocks down on Main Street - but it would need extensive work.” He sighs. “We really could use the help though. We are seeing more and more kids these days, and pediatrics isn’t any of our specialties."
"Please keep this private, but what if I was looking to invest in a pediatric facility. Would you be able to help me navigate through all of it?"
"Absolutely, Avery. If it's really something you think you want to do, I can have the contractor we've been speaking with give you a call."
"Yes, please. This is definitely something I would like to spend that trust on."
"Well, I'll keep it to myself until you let me know otherwise. Now, do you need a ride home today?"
"No, sir. I picked up my new car yesterday evening. An Audi SUV. It’s so pretty."
"I saw it out in the lot when I arrived this morning; suits you. Well, I'm off. Don't stay too long."
"I won't. Have a good night, Al."
Dr. Fields waves as he walks out the office and luckily, after ten minutes, Avery is leaving behind him.
She spots Logan in the parking lot and she waves in his direction, the look on his face is one of irritation so she knows now isn't the time to speak with him.
"Nice car," he shouts across the lot.
"Thanks."
He quickly slides into his vehicle, halting any further conversation. Following his lead, Avery piles herself into the driver’s seat of her new vehicle and drives back to her apartment, downtrodden. She had been hoping to have rectified her situation with Logan at this point, but nothing seems to be working in her favor.
When Avery arrives at the apartment complex, she finds that Nikki hasn't arrived yet, so she stops and picks up the mail. Opening the front door, Avery slips on an envelope that had been slid under their door, almost tumbling to the floor as she reaches for the wall. Retrieving the ill-fated item from the floor, Avery glides her finger under the flap to open the package and takes out a large, stapled pile of papers. Amongst the legal-looking paperwork is a letter - in her grandmother's perfect cursive handwriting.