24
Burning Bridges
Oliver
Now that I have nothing to lose, I don’t have to watch my words or worry about whether or not someone sees my naked ass on the Internet. I now understand the kind of rage that can drive someone to want to hurt another person through revenge and retaliation because that’s what I feel now toward Hayden.
Fortunately for both of us, I’m not the kind of man who would stoop to her tactics in order to get back at her. With that said, I’m no longer going to try and placate her. I am going to meet her head-on and play her game, and while I might be brought down, she won’t get away without consequences either.
I’ve given her a couple of days before she has to be back in California to meet me. I’ve also given her a warning that she’d better stay away from Charlotte or my wrath wi;; be unending until she is imprisoned. I’m not sure I can put her in prison, but I hope the threat of turning her in for stalking or whatever the hell it was she’s doing, is enough that she will leave Charlotte alone, and get the first plane back to California to meet me.
Since I can’t possibly feel any worse than I’m feeling since the moment I walked out of Charlotte’s condo, I figured I’d stop by my parents’ house, and let them know that I’m back in California. Of course, I’m not planning to stay, because it’s unlikely I will find a job out here after Hayden’s trashing me to every clinic I might work for. Plus, I’m not really sure I want to stay. The more I think about the idea of joining a program like Doctors Without Borders, the more appealing it is. My skills go beyond reconstructive surgery since plastic surgery residency is done after doing a general surgical residency, so I can be of use in other areas of surgical need. If I can’t do the work I enjoy or be with the woman I love, what better way to distract myself than by going to foreign lands and immersing myself in helping people less fortunate than me?
My parents don’t like surprise visits so today, I called my mother first, and she invited me for dinner tonight. So now I’m at their doorstep with flowers for my mother in an attempt to put a wall up, so that I can deal with them for the next couple of hours. They’re difficult enough when times are good, but when they hear my current predicament, all hell will break loose.
When the door opens, my mother gives me a light hug and my father greets me with a handshake, welcoming me home.
“I had the cook make all your favorite foods and dessert,” my mother says, ushering me into the sitting area, where we have drinks while we wait for dinner to be served.
“You didn’t have to do all that, Mom.” I feel certain that once I tell them what’s going on, I won’t be here for dinner. I take a seat and accept the drink my father offers me. It’s a watered-down scotch, and while I prefer it straight, watered-down is a better option so I don’t embarrass myself in front of them.
“So, is it too cold for you in New York?” my father asks, sitting in his chair and lighting a cigar. My mother makes a face at him like she always has in the forty years that he’s been smoking them.
“Not exactly,” I say.
“What does that mean?” my mother asks as she sits in her designated chair. “Is this just a visit? You will be here for Christmas, won’t you?”
It hasn’t escaped my notice that they haven’t asked about Theo and it irks me. I’m not sure what I’m doing for Christmas. I haven’t talked to Theo yet about his plans.”
My mother has that annoyed look on her face that she sometimes gets. “Theo’s always too busy to come home for holidays. Don’t think I didn’t notice you didn’t come home for Thanksgiving.”
When I think of Thanksgiving, I see Charlotte and the start of something good that I’ve now destroyed.
“Tell me you’ll be here for Christmas,” she says.
I wonder if Theo has told them he’s engaged.
Deciding to change the subject again, I say, “I don’t know how long I’m going to be home, but I’ll try to be here for Christmas.”
“Where are you going?” my mother asks, looking at my father as if she wants him to make me stay.
“I’m not exactly sure, but I’m thinking of joining an international medical team.”
My mother’s face falls while my father’s hardens. “You have a perfectly good education and experience behind you. Why are you wandering around instead of staying here and practicing like you’re supposed to?” He asks in the tone that he used with me and Theo when we were little boys. It’s odd that he thinks that tone will still work now that I’m a grown man.
I down my drink. “Let me tell you why I can’t do that, and then you’ll see that you probably should’ve picked Theo as your favorite son instead of me.”
My mother gasps. “What a thing to say.”
My father simply scowls at me.
“I had a short relationship with Dr. Shaw’s daughter,” I start, beginning to withdraw emotionally from my parents. Charlotte would probably say it’s a bad thing, but for me it’s a necessity because I don’t want their disappointment or shock to hurt me. Since I know it’s coming, I can guard myself from it by acting as if it doesn’t matter. Maybe I should have talked to Theo about this, as he became an expert at it growing up under their disapproval of him. He might have tips for me.
“When I broke things off with her, she didn’t take it very well, which is why I ended up having to leave Dr. Shaw’s office.”
“Now why doesn’t Dr. Shaw understand that you are a young, vibrant, handsome man? Of course you’re going to sow your oats, although perhaps with your boss’s daughter isn’t the right thing,” my mother says with her boys-will-be-boys attitude.
“The thing is, she decided to seek revenge on me, which is why I couldn’t stay in California. I hoped that by going to New York and getting away from her, her anger would dissipate, and she would move on. But she made it nearly impossible for me to find work in New York, and then the other day, she showed up.”