Page 19 of Puck Me

“Please, don’t see it like that.” This is it. The time to be honest. “Look, Chester, I’m going to be completely truthful with you. I’m attracted to you.”

Chester’s mouth pops open in surprise. It was clear he wasn’t expecting that.

“I thought I could handle it, but I’ve realized that I can’t. I should never have continued treating you for as long as I have. I did it not only because I want to help you, but because I like you as a person and I enjoy spending time with you. It was wrong of me, and I apologize.”

I’m not sure if Chester heard a word of what I just said. The look of desolation on his face almost has me coming out of my chair. I want nothing more than to pull him into my arms and comfort him. If he were any other patient, I would do it, protocol be damned, but with Chester, I can’t risk it. If he tries to kiss me again… Well, I think I’d reach the limits of my resistance.

“I understand.”

Of all the things I expected, this was not one of them. “You do?”

“Yes, I understand perfectly.”

Something about the way he says it is concerning in a way I can’t quite put my finger on. “What, exactly, is it that you understand, Chester?”

“You want me to see Dr. George. I understand English, Storm. I’ll be going now.”

“Chester, wait—”

“For what? Our business is concluded. I am no longer your patient.”

I can tell that Chester is holding down roiling emotions just under the surface, and it worries me. I wish he’d tell me what was going on in his head, but I suppose I’ve lost that right. I can only hope that he’s more forthcoming with Dr. George.

Chester gets up and leaves, and I have to fight down the urge to go after him. Forcing my company on him when he doesn’t want it, especially when I’m not even his doctor anymore, isn’t going to help anything.

I try unsuccessfully to do paperwork. I rescheduled all of my appointments for today in advance, knowing that I would likely not be in any fit state to see patients after breaking the news to Chester.

He took it better than I could possibly have predicted, and yet, I’m as shaken as if he’d screamed and thrown things at me.

I don’t like how calm he was on the outside, when he was clearly struggling internally. I try for another half hour with the paperwork before giving up. I need to check on Chester, just to make sure he’s okay. I’ll just take a peek through his door. He doesn’t even need to know I’m there.

I do just that. I poke my head through the door, only to find… nothing. An empty bed, with none of Chester’s things around it.

My heart leaps into my throat as I practically sprint back to the nurses’ station. “Chester! Where is he?”

Melody looks up from the chart she was annotating, taking in my disheveled appearance with concern. “He discharged himself.”

The world comes to a grinding halt.

“What?”

“He discharged himself. Dr. Harris, are you alright?”

“Why—why did you let him leave?” I whisper.

“We have no right to hold him. His mandatory three days were up weeks ago.”

“B-but no patient is supposed to leave here without their psychiatrist signing off on the order!”

“I know that. Dr. George signed off on it.”

“Why would she do that! I gave her his file! She knows that—”

I clench my jaw, barely preventing myself from shouting confidential patient information to the whole ward. Dr. George knows that Chester is still suicidal. I never thought I needed to take any legal action to keep him here, given that he’s been here willingly for weeks now.

“She tried her best to convince him otherwise, but he was insistent. In the end, he left against medical advice.”

“She should have told me…” Maybe I could have said something to Chester, to stop him from leaving.

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