Grateful | Fragile Hearts

chapter 6

We went to the elevator and he pressed a button. A few seconds later, we heard the bell ring and the doors opened.

He guided me to a room and turned on the light. It was an exam room, similar to a hospital. I stood there watching him awkwardly. He washed his hands at the sink and dried them. He turned around and looked to me. He grabbed me and placed me on top the exam table.

He then opened a drawer and pulled out two packets. They looked to be needle kits. I got anxious.

I'm very afraid of needles.

I looked to him nervously. "Wh-what are you doing? I asked him. He looked up and met my eyes. He saw the terror and his face softened a bit.

"I'm doing a paternity test." He told me as he threw on gloves and grabbed antibacterial wipes.

"I-I don't like needles" I told him as tears started to form in my eyes. It was the truth. Ever since I was young, I always feared needles. Seeing my grandma in the hospital getting poked with needles all day didn't help at all.

He came towards me and that's when the tears finally spilled.

"Pl-please I really don't like needles."I told him, as I cried.

He looked up to me and sighed. "Take a deep breath." He told me.

I did.

"Don't look it at." He told me as he tied the rubber band around my arm. He took the wipe and cleaned my vein.

Before he grabbed the needle, he took my chin and gently directed it towards the wall.

"Looking at it will make it worse." He said in a soft voice.

The first time he actually showed some humanity.

"Sharp scratch" and I felt it insert into my arm.

In less than a minute, it was over. He bandaged it and put tape around my arm.

"All done." He said as he threw away the trash and bagged up the tube.

He then did the same thing to himself and within minutes both samples were ready in the bag.

He opened the door and handed it to a nurse. "I need this tested asap, he told her" in a serious tone.

She nodded. "Yes Doctor" and she took the sample out.

He took off his gloves and washed his hands again. Without missing a beat, he went to the wall and I saw him grab something.

A thermometer.

He grabbed it from the wall and inserted a probe. He then came straight to me and held it out in front of me.

"Place this under your tongue" he told me. I did as told and he held it under my tongue. It beeped after a few seconds.

He looked to it and stared at it for a few seconds.

"100.2" he told me. He sighed. "You're running a fever." he said in a calm tone.

I shook my head. "It's okay, I'll be better by tomorrow" I told him, hoping he'd buy it.

The truth is, I didn't know if I could afford a doctor's visit in the city. Money was tight now that my grandma was gone.

He stared to me, studying me. He leaned back against the counter, still intimidating as ever.

"I get it, you're on your own now in a new environment with a complete stranger. I get it." He started off in a hard tone.

"Regardless of what the paternity results are, I'm not going to let you walk out of here by yourself." He continued seriously.

"You're 15 in a big city. It's not safe out there." he said as he looked to me.

"So here's the deal." he started off, as he had his arms crossed, still leaning on the counter.

"While we wait for those results, I'll take my called "guardianship" over you. You'll let me check you out and give you medicine. If the results come back negative, then we can both go our separate ways." He told me.

"Deal?" He asked me

"Okay fine, but I'm not sick. I'll be okay soon" I told him.

He shook his head. "Tell that to an idiot."

"I'm not a fan of doctors." I told him nervously.

"Ouch" he scoffed out, and laughed sarcastically.

"If those results come back positive, you'll be spending the next couple of years with one" he told me.

"You can't be a doctor" I told him disbelievingly.

He laughed again. "I may not be many things, but a doctor is one of them." He told me.

Great.