Page 3 of Healing Hazel
“Are you with us?”
Huh?
“Haze…”
The whisper sounded like a shout and had me practically falling out of my chair as I whipped around.
“Whoa,” Vince said, his hands up, palms out. “Sorry, Hazel, I didn’t mean to scare you, I was just letting you know she’s speaking to you.” He tilted his head toward the front of the room.”
I felt the blood that had drained from my face returning in a rush and was sure everyone in the room was now aware that I’d not been paying attention. The look on Vince’s face made me feel about an inch tall. “Sorry I overreacted. You just startled me.”
“You sure you’re okay?”
That was one thing about my classmates. No matter what weird thing was said or when an unexpected reaction happened, there wasn’t a single person in this room who’d judge.
“Yes, thanks.”
“No problem… well, at least not with me,” he said, his eyes shifting from mine to look over my shoulder.
Right, I wasn’tthere,I was in class. A class where it was now even more obvious my inattention had been noticed and sonotin a good way. Taking a deep breath, I turned back to face the music, or rather the woman standing in front of the room. “I’m sorry, Professor Berringer, um, did you say something?” Good grief, could I sound any lamer?
Of course she’d “said something”. I was attending her lecture at Rawhide University. Duh.
Professors were pretty much the same in all universities unless, of course, the campus was smack dab in the middle of a Ranch known not only for its kink, but pretty much famous for its beliefs on discipline. And believe me, those beliefs went far beyond sitting through some boring lecture about one’s lack of attention. If it wasn’t for the fact that this particular professor was not only a Little outside of the university, but currently a pregnant Little, and hence a patient at the clinic, I was pretty sure my attention would be focused on the condition of my ass and my ability to sit comfortably, rather than my sorry excuse of a love life.
“I was asking if you’re with us or were we so boring you tuned out completely?”
Wow! Who is that asking and what had they done with the sweet woman who normally taught biology?
Thank God I had enough sense not to actually saythatout loud. “No, ma’am. I mean, no you’re not boring me, I-I’m just…” Just making an even bigger fool out of myself. Forcing myself totake a deep breath, I straightened in my seat and actually met her gaze. “I apologize and promise not to zone out again.”
She took her time to respond, her gaze boring into mine as if trying to determine how sincerely she could take that promise. Finally, she gave the slightest nod. “I hope you don’t because I hate to think of you falling further behind. Everything we are covering will be on the final before the holiday break.”
“I swear I’ll pay attention to every word you say!”
A slight twitch of her lips told me perhaps I’d said that a tad bit too enthusiastically. “See that you do.” She turned back to the board and then back to me. “Oh, and please, stop at my desk on your way out.”
It took every ounce of strength in me to remain upright when I really wanted to slowly slip to the floor in a puddle of sorrowful goo. “Yes, Ma’am.”
Though I kept my promise and focused on the remainder of the lesson, if asked what had been covered, I’d have been completely incapable of answering.
With the bell, my classmates began to gather up their items while I ever so slowly pulled my bag from the floor to my lap in order to put my books inside.
“Don’t worry, I’ll share my notes,” Vince assured me with a smile. “And if you need to talk, you know,after…I’ll be in the café and will not only give you an ear, I’ll buy you a coffeeanda cookie.”
“Thanks, Vince.” He was a nice guy and I was sure his offer was heartfelt, but there were some things better left in the dark. Besides, I needed to remember that I was a grown woman and not a middle school kid being sent to the principal’s office. I finished packing up my stuff and as the last student filed out, I slipped out of my chair and approached the desk at the front of the room. “I really am sorry, Brooke,” I said, wanting her to know I was sincere.
“I believe you, Hazel. You’re not one to drift off so I’m a little concerned that today isn’t the first time. While you’ve not missed a class, you’ve been rather absent lately. What’s going on? Is there something I can help you with?”
I could feel tears welling but forced them down. Not only was this woman a friend of mine and one of the kindest souls I’d ever met, she was the sister-in-law of the very person that I feared I was about to lose. No way was I going to heave my pitiful problems off on her. Friend or not, she had far more important things to deal with, like preparing for a baby to enter her life.
“Thank you for the offer, but I’m fine. I really have no excuse. And I promise, you’re not the least bit boring. In fact, this is one of my favorite subjects.”
She smiled, her head tilting slightly to the side. “I’m glad to hear that seeing as you’re studying for your nursing degree. It would be rather a shame if the sciences didn’t excite you at least a teeny bit, don’t you think?”
I was finally able to give a real smile and felt the tears evaporating before they fell. “Definitely, and my future patients might not trust me if I didn’t know the difference between a gene and a pair of Wranglers.”
For some reason that had her eyebrows lifting. Not in thatoh you’re in so much troubleway Dominants were quite famous for, but in a way that saiddid I actually hear you say that, which made me feel a trifle bit stupid. “I mean, how human cells deal with DNA and?—”
