Page 23 of Rage

I hesitate, torn between my desire to confide in someone and my instinct to keep my guard up.As I open my mouth to respond, I notice a subtle shift in Dr.Ramirez’s demeanor.Her eyes dart to the door, a faint blush coloring her cheeks.

“Is it… Is it about Dr.Peterson?”she asks, her voice dropping to a near whisper.

The mention of his name sends a chill down my spine.“What about him?”I ask cautiously.

Dr.Ramirez leans in, her perfume—a cloying, overly sweet scent—invading my space.“I’ve noticed him paying you a lot of attention lately,” she says, her tone odd.“Has he been… inappropriate?”

“Dr.Peterson is just a colleague,” I say firmly, taking a step back.“Nothing more.”

A flash of relief crosses Dr.Ramirez’s face.“Oh, of course,” she says quickly.“I was just making sure you were okay.”

“Dr.Ramirez,” I say carefully, “has Dr.Peterson ever… made you feel uncomfortable?”

Dr.Ramirez’s expression hardens slightly.“Of course not,” she says firmly.She smiles brightly, but it seems forced.“He’s always been nothing but professional with me.”Her voice comes out in a weird squeak from the shock of my question.

“I need to eat my lunch.Have a nice day,” I tell her, and give her a side hug before making my way to the break room.

I step into the room where we all have lunch, there’re even a few beds in here that people make use of when they have a twenty-four-hour shift.

Just inside of the door is a man standing there looking lost, holding a huge bouquet of roses.

“Are you looking for someone?”Dr.Thompson, the bitch of the century resident, asks excitedly, practically pushing me out of the way.

I step aside, letting her handle it.“It’s for a Dr.Beckham,” the man says, and I turn around grinning.

“That’s me.”

I can’t hide my excitement and look at the card.

Thinking of you, angel.

I read the words over and over.

I can’t help the smile that spreads across my face as I take the flowers from the delivery man.The fragrant roses fill my senses, momentarily pushing away the stress and anxiety that have plagued me all day.

Dr.Thompson’s excitement deflates visibly.“Oh,” she says, her voice flat.“How… nice for you.”

I ignore her thinly veiled jealousy, focusing instead on the beautiful bouquet in my arms.As I search for a vase, I can feel the curious eyes of my colleagues on me.

“Secret admirer, Dr.Beckham?”Dr.Ramirez asks, a knowing glint in her eye as she tries to peek over my shoulder to read the card.

I feel my cheeks flush.“Something like that,” I mumble, busying myself with arranging the flowers.

This just made the shittiest day a hundred times better.There is another knock at the door and a food delivery man is holding a bag.“Dr.Beckham?”

The grin that comes over me almost splits my face.“Me.”I take the food, seconds away from crying because this is so sweet.

I sit down with my roses and food, which I devour because I’m starving.I shoot a text to Mason, thanking him for the lunch and flowers.

I can feel my colleagues’ eyes on me but nothing at this point could truly wreck my mood.

I finish up my food and give away some of my breadsticks to the staff who were eyeing them, then I set my flowers off to the side out of everyone’s way.

A commotion in the hallway draws everyone’s attention.Raised voices, one of them unmistakably Dr.Peterson’s, echo through the door.

Curiosity and dread war within me as I approach the door, peering out into the corridor.

What I see makes my jaw drop.

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