Page 76 of Rise Above

It was very weird that Bowie had randomly popped

out of nowhere just to say he wanted to discuss a patient, but that was something I could worry about later. Anxiety rolled up my spine, but I straightened my shoulders and refocused on both my friends.

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“What happened once Talon hit the ice?” I stabbed

a piece of chicken from my salad. “He was in so much agony; I couldn’t pull my eyes off him.”

“Basically Zeke, the goalie, went after the other

player. Referees and coaches got involved and fans went off a bit.” Dre pulled her bottom lip into her mouth. “It was hectic, but Walker wasn’t the only one getting hurt. People were pissed. Hockey can get dirty but not when the game’s over.”

“It was wild, Aife.” Nat sipped on her coffee. “Cops

got called. The Hammers were pissed, like beyond pissed. It’s still all over ESPN and the local news, and it’s even worse since TJ was the face of team with their latest ad. Clearly, he won’t be playing for a while.”

“He doesn’t seem that upset about a break.” I

shoved more food into my mouth, unknown emotions ate at my stomach. “He’s at my home and keeps saying he doesn’t want to go home. So… maybe he isn’t handling the injury that well if he’s afraid to be alone.”

Nat shot me a look. “Let’s unpack that. Thought we

were done with men?”

“To be fair, Walker is something else entirely.” Dre

smirked at me. “He’s more than a man, that’s for sure. However, Nat has a point. You moved here for school, and I thought that was your focus now.”

“I don’t know, guys. I really don’t know what to tell

y’all. I like him.” A blush rose on my cheeks causing them to warm. I set my empty plate aside. “I’m open to whatever it is that we are doing. He’s surprisingly sweet.”

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“Fine, for now.” Nat finished her coffee, sending

me a pointed stare. “Run off to Bowie. No one likes to keep him waiting.”

Shaking my head, I blew a kiss at both women and

ran off to the fourth floor. It was rare for a neurologist to find case management outside of rounds. Whatever he wanted to talk about must have been important. Although, I’ve also been pulled aside to get yelled at or berated about a patient still being in the hospital. So, who was to say?

Knocking on his office door, Bowie nodded at me

before motioning for me to sit. He ran a hand through his shoulder length hair before folding his hands together. Bowie licked his lips and released a heavy sigh. “So, we have an interesting case.”

“Okay?” I couldn’t keep the questioning tone out of

my voice. While my interest was clearly piqued, I wasn’t sure why I was needed for an “interesting” case. Case management was for discharge planning and resources. Occasionally, we were used for therapeutic needs, but doctors rarely gave us a heads up. We kind of just figured it out on our own.

“I wanted to talk to you before consulting psych.

You can clear people, right?”