Sticks and Stones

Eleven: Cause Two Can Keep a Secret... Hopefully.

May or may not be updating twice today since this chapter doesn't have any Tatum and Brady interactions and obviously those are my favorite parts, so keep an eye out for later!

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Tatum's eyes narrowed in thought as she flipped through the printed pages that Doctor Evans had laid out for her. It was some new thesis written by a cardiologist she knew. Doctor Evans was well aware of Tatum's career aspirations and continuously provided with any materials she thought Tatum might find helpful. She was a general surgeon for a number of years before working at the university. She said she loved it and thrived off helping people, but eventually the burn out became too much. Doctor Evans also seemed to genuinely enjoy teaching as well, so Tatum supposed it worked out.

It really worked out for Tatum, considering she now thought Doctor Evans something of a mentor to her. Tatum had been putting some extra hours in lately, hoping to impress Doctor Evans enough to give her a recommendation for Doctor Ashford. Honestly, she was a bit concerned with actually fixing Brady's knee. God, she was trying. But Brady was next to impossible. Every time she got close, he found some way out of it. She wasn't giving up— not by any means. However, she had to have some sort of contingency plan.

There was a knocking sound on the door to her room at the clinic, pulling her focus from the words in front of her. She glanced up curiously, seeing a certain hockey player standing there. A hockey player who she had a less than pleasant experience with last she saw him. Tatum didn't say anything, just raising her eyebrows expectantly.

When he didn't say anything either, Tatum realized she would have to be the one to start the conversation. She placed the paper down, sitting back in her chair. "Can I help you?"

"Well, I hope so. My shoulder's acting up," Theo commented, hand going to his shoulder with his other hand and rolling it dramatically.

She tilted her head, slowly saying, "I don't think I'm assigned to you."

"I requested you today," he told her.

Tatum gave him a questioning look. "Why would you do that?"

"Figured it would give us a chance to chat," he mused, waltzing into the room. He handed her a stack of papers which she took hesitantly, keeping her eyes on him as she did so.

"I'm flattered," she said stiffly. "But I wasn't even aware you came to PT. Not sure I'll be of much help."

"My plan is pretty straight forward. My shoulder just gets stiff sometimes," Theo told her with a shrug, nodding at the papers in her hand. "I'm sure you'll have no problem with it, especially after dealing with Parker."

"Is that what this is about? Brady?" she asked, unimpressed.

"Maybe," he said vaguely, but the look on his face confirmed it for her. "How about we start and we can get into it?"

"Intriguing," Tatum quipped in a sarcastic tone, flipping the papers back in his direction. "But I'm all set."

Theo gave her a challenging look. "Didn't realize you could just turn us away."

Doctor Evans chose that exact moment to sweep by the door, not even glancing into the room as she said, "She can't."

Tatum groaned, mentally cursing Doctor Evans. She sucked in a deep breath before plastering a smile on her face, nodding to the seat across from her. "Take a seat."

He smirked triumphantly, flopping down into the seat. Theo stared at her, leaning comfortably back into the chair. She flipped through the papers, finding herself a bit confused. The first thing she noticed was that this plan was from a couple of years ago. The date at the top was old. There was some scribbling below it in what she recognized to be Doctor Evans' handwriting. It noted the current date. She glanced up at him curiously, realizing that he just started his plan again today. According to the notes, he had some residual shoulder pain from being hit a few too many times during the games.