Page 27 of That Summer
She huffed and rooted through her purse, extracting a crinkled sheet. Trying to smooth out the wrinkles, she passed it to him.
He flipped it over and held it up to the window.
Was he trying to be an ass and see through the small grease spot?
“It seems as if this piece of paper has seen better days.”
“Yeah, many times I turned it into a ball and threw it against the wall.”
“Let’s go over it, shall we?”
Dr. Navin was impossible to read. His expression never lit up, and no smile threatened to erupt. His lips didn’t even mumble as if in deep thought. Nothing. Not even a shift in position. He was a blank book.
“This is very interesting,” he said.
“I’ll bet.” She fought the urge to roll her eyes.
“I’m curious to understand why you have Percocet and Xanax listed.”
“You’re the doctor. You should understand.”
His body stiffened at the remark. “But I want you to explain it to me. Why do you have those two drugs listed?”
“You’ve seen my file, right? You know I am addicted to them.” She pressed her hands against her thighs to stop fidgeting.
“Am? Or were?”
Hmm.She crossed her arms over her chest. “Both I suppose.”
“Are you currently using?” He reached behind him to the desk and pulled over the manila file folder. His thumb brushed along the edge of multiple pages.
She cringed. Having already gone over the Benedryl incident with Lucas, Kaitlyn and her daddy, she really felt no need to go over it again, especially with someone who couldn’t even understand her previous addiction to Percocet. Evasiveness was always the answer. “The Xanax? Yes. Chris, I mean Dr. Johnson, doses me two a week. But no to the Percs. However, it doesn’t mean I’m not still addicted to them. I think about them all the time. When I finally fall asleep, I dream of them.”
“What is it about them you enjoy so much?”
So many reasons really.
She huffed and selected the best answer. The one that would probably end the questioning. “The way they take away my pain.”
“Tell me about your pain.”
He’s relentless. Tell me about this. Talk about that. You’re the doctor. You’re supposed to know what all this means. Just tell me I’m crazy and call it a day.
Instead of lashing out, she changed positions. Twice. Aurora sat on her legs and hugged herself. “It’s not just physical, because I get Advil after physio. It’s mental too. And maybe a bit emotional. Just having the perc makes me not feel anything at all.”
“What are you trying to avoid?”
“Feeling lost.”
Dammit. That fell out too easily.
“Ah. Yes.” The folder skidded onto the table between them. “And how do we avoid that feeling?”
“By taking the Percs?”
Seriously? How did this man ever graduate from medical school?
“Without drugs.”