Page 35 of Love Medley
Jake doesn’t know what a minefield he’s stepped into. “One. A brother named Peter.”
“What does he do?”
I sigh, turning my coffee cup a few times before I answer. What do I say? The answer is complicated. “Peter is…he’s currently in an alcoholic rehab center detoxing.”
“Oof,” Jake says, his forehead wrinkling in sympathy. “I’m so sorry to hear that.”
“Yeah, me too,” I say. “My parents are really hard on him. In Chinese culture, the boys are sometimes spoiled, but in my family, my parents have super high expectations of Peter. Every time he failed to meet their standards, everything got worse.”
I omit the part where I toppled the first domino.
“I definitely understand parents who have super high expectations,” Jake says, staring off into the distance.
I recall Jake’s troubled words a couple of days ago when he told me about his difficult relationship with his father. “Your dad?”
“Yeah. I have two brothers—one you’ve already heard about, Sterling. He’s the oldest, and also the golden child who can do no wrong. It’s hard to follow his act because he’s a well-renowned cardiothoracic surgeon. He’s probably going to be next in line for chief of surgery whenever that post opens up.”
I’ve sensed there was some tension in Jake’s relationship with Sterling even before Sam complicated the picture. “Were you two ever close?”
Jake sighs. “Sterling is eight years older than I am, so even though we played some as kids, he quickly outgrew me. And then by the time we were adults?” He shrugs, a gesture that I somehow find infinitely sad. “He parrots a lot of what my dad says, and my dad has a lot of issues about my life choices.”
My brow furrows. “What issues?” And then immediately I add, “Oh my gosh, please don’t answer that if you don’t want to. I’m just confused why anyone would have trouble supporting yourdecisions, because you have a great job and are amazing at what you do.”
Jake gives me a half-smile. “No, it’s okay. I was originally a medical student like you, but I realized pretty quickly that I was only in medical school to please my dad. I dropped out after two years and started nursing school instead.”
My eyes widen. I cannot even imagine going against my parents. “Wow, how did your dad react when you told him?”
Jake laughs, a harsh sound I’m not used to hearing from him. “I didn’t tell him anything until I graduated nursing school and got a job at Blackwell ER. But yeah, when he found out…he wasn’t happy.”
My jaw drops. If only I had half of Jake’s courage. “You kept it from him? Wow! That must have been so tough. But I completely understand why you did it. You probably didn’t want him to stand in the way of what you wanted to do with your life.”
Jake’s lips upturn slowly, his eyes glowing. In this moment, we seem to be connecting in a way that digs deep. “Exactly. I’m pretty sure my dad would have made my life a living hell if he knew I dropped out of medical school and entered nursing school. So I just took him out of the equation. Once I got the degree, there was nothing he could do about it.”
I’m still piecing the puzzle of Jake’s life together. “Was he angry because you didn’t go through with medical school or was it because you decided to be a nurse?”
Jake runs a hand through his hair. “Both. He wanted me to have a prestigious career, of course. But becoming a nurse? He took that as a personal attack.”
“Why?” Because I have Asian parents, I think I know the answer already.
“Having a male nurse in the family is a total embarrassment to my father.”
I inhale sharply. Even though I knew what was coming, still hearing the words out loud packs a punch. Jake pursued nursing—his true calling—even though it would go directly against his parents’ desires. That's just…unbelievably courageous.
“I hate that for you. I think parents sometimes forget that kids aren’t just an extension of themselves. We’re our own separate entities.” I reach over to touch his hand, unable to resist after all.
Jake sends me a wry smile, squeezing back before letting go. “Thanks. You really get it, and that means a lot.”
Then a thought occurs to me. “Wait, where did you go to medical school?”
“Blackwell,” Jake says, affirming my suspicions. “But you and I would never have met because I think I quit just before you started.”
We quickly compare dates, and he’s right. He dropped out after his second year, and I would have started August of that same year.
It’s crazy we were on the same track for a while, and we just barely missed each other. For a brief second, I imagine what my life would've been like if I had met and dated Jake instead of Weston. But then I immediately stifle that thought becausethere’s no point in imagining a different reality—I have to figure out how to live in this one.
“What made you decide to switch to nursing?”
“While medicine's the right place for me, nursing is a more natural fit for me, better suited to my level of capability.”
