"And leave you here alone? That wouldn't be very gentleman of me would it?" He smiles. "I'll wait, it's okay."
"You sure, you just seem very busy."
"What makes me seem busy?"
"You keep checking the time," I point out.
"I like knowing what time it is," he says.
"Okay," I say as I shrug.
We wait in the waiting room for hours before a doctor finally calls my name.
"Hi, I'm doctor Martin."
"Hey, I'm Ava."
"I hear your ankle is hurting. Can you tell me what happened, Ava?" The doctor asks me.
Instead of telling him the embarrassing story of how I actually twisted my foot, I jump to the part where I fell off the bed.
"Alright, we'll do an x-Ray and get a better look," the doctor says as he pulls in the x-Ray. He puts on a vest and gives one to... Ugh, I can't seem to remember his name. He's paying my medical bills yet I don't know his name. Does that make me a bad person? The doctor pulls the X-ray from the wall and positions it above my ankle. He takes a few pictures.
"Alright all done," the doctor says and pushes away the x-Ray. "Give me a moment to process the x-Ray shots. I'll be back." He leaves the room. The room grows quiet. Should I ask him his name now?
"Think you're going to have to wear a cast and use crutches?" He asks jokingly. "If you do, can I sign it?"
"Makes sense since your paying for it," I joke to him. He laughs.
"A girl with a sense of humour," he says, "I appreciate that."
We talk some more before the doctor comes back in.
"Well Ava, I've got your results," he says as he puts up the pictures of my x-ray. "Looks like you've fractured your foot." He points to the part of my foot that I fractured and tells me that I have to wear a cast for six weeks.
"Six weeks?" I shriek. "How I'm I going to work?"
"I'll give you a doctor's note," the doctor says. Unless you can work sitting down, I suggest you don't work at all. Walking too much without it will place a lot of stress on your other ankle. You will need crutches so I'll put that order in. Also, your ankle needs to be elevated when you're sitting down. Understand?"
"Yeah," I answer feeling defeated. Missing work is something I cannot afford to do right now. It's what's helping me pay for school and rent. The doctor wraps my foot and puts on the cast. He then hands me the crutches.
"You're all set to go," he says. I get set on the crutches and we walk back to his car. He puts my crutches in the back seat and helps me into the car.
"I'm sorry but I have to get to work in an hour," he says. "Is there somewhere you want me to drop you off?"
"Yes, my house," I reply
"Alright, just tell me where it is."
I tell him my address and he takes me there. When we arrive at my place, he helps me with my crutches.
"Thanks," I say. He offers to walk me inside but I politely decline.
"Alright, well it was nice meeting you Ava," he grabs my hand and smiles. That's when I see the dimple on the left side of his cheek.
"You too, uh..."
"Noah," he says. I feel so embarrassed.
"Sorry. It was nice meeting you, Noah. Thanks again for paying for my crutches and cast" I let go of his hands and struggle to get myself up the stairs. When I finally do, I look back and he's still there. He's leaning on the car laughing at me. I shake my head. Unbelievable. It's like he likes to watch me suffer. I remember that I don't have my keys. I ring the doorbell praying that Dayna is home.
"You locked out?" Noah calls from the car. I'm about to answer when the door swings open. Oh, thank God! A guy wrapped in a towel opens the door?
"Who are you?" I ask.
"I'm John," he replies.
"Where's Dayna?"
"She's still in bed. Can I help you?"
I brush past him and enter my home. I go straight to my room and drop the crutches on the floor. I try to itch my foot, but my cast is blocking the way. How I'm I going to take a shower with this thing? I look out the window before I make my way to the bathroom.
Noah is gone.
I'm trying to eat my toast in peace, but the sex noises coming from Dayna's room seem to be growing louder. A few minutes later Dayna bursts through the door practically naked.
"Ava, where the hell have you been? You disappeared last night."
"I have no idea, Dee. I blacked out. Why did you leave me alone?"
"Leave you alone? You weren't alone. You were making out with some dude from the club. I swear I blinked and you were gone." She picks half of my toast and eats it.
"Ew, you didn't even wash your hands," I say.
"What? It's just sex." She says. She wipes her hands on her hip.
"By the way, do you know where my purse is? And I don't know where my cellphone is either." I ask her.
"Nope, no idea. Did you call it?"
I slap my head. I didn't think of calling it. I take up the house phone and call my cellphone. No answer. At least it's not dead. I think to myself.
"Any luck?" Dayna asks me. She takes another piece of my toast.
"Dayna!" I yell at her.
"Okay, okay." She puts it back on my plate. I push the plate. There's no way I'm eating it now. She finally notices my foot. "What the hell happened to you?"
I tell her the embarrassing story of how I fractured my foot. She laughs historically.
"I knew you were clumsy but damn! I think it now qualifies as a medical condition" She jokes. "But anyways, how was the sex?" She puts both her hands under both sides of her cheeks like a teenage girl waiting for the latest gossip.
"I don't remember. I told you, I blacked out. I didn't even remember the guy's name. I don't think I've ever been this embarrassed in my life." She pats my back and finishes the rest of my toast. The guy she was sleeping with comes out of the room fully naked.
"Dayna!" I yell.
"Sorry, I can't find my boxers," the guy says.
This story sounds oddly familiar, I think to myself. Dayna pushes him back into the room.
"I'll help you find it," she says to him.
I head to my room. I need to go to the bar. What was the name of the bar again?
"Dayna" I call out from my room. She yells back. "What was the name of the bar we went to again?"
"The Sinners Bar?" She says. That doesn't sound familiar.
"No, I'm talking about the last bar we went to," I ask again.
"Ohh, the bougie one. I think it was Joey's," she says. Bingo that's the one. I pick up the house phone. I'm about to call a taxi, but then I look at my leg. There's no way I'm limping all the way downtown. I decide to call the bar instead. I limp to the living room and take Dayna's phone. I look up the number for the bar and then call it. After four rings, the phone answers.
"Joey's Bar and Grill, how can I help you?"
"Hey, I was at the bar last night and I wanted to know if I left my purse or a cell phone there." I describe what my purse and phone look like.
"Hold on one second." I'm on hold for six minutes before the guy comes back to the phone.
"Sorry ma'am, there's nothing here matching that description. Is there anything else I can do for you?"