Chapter 16

Work flew by. We had four separate emergency visits, two of which required surgery. Doctor Worthington let me be more hands-on than he normally does, which tells me he's beginning to trust me more. He's always been a control freak when it comes to the order of how he wants things done during surgeries, but I get it. If something goes wrong, it's all on him. He's the veterinarian, the most trained medical professional in the building. When he handed me the forceps and told me to move some dog's organs around, I was shocked. I nearly froze in place, but I quickly snapped out of it when I realized I better take him up on his offer before he retracted it.

At the end of the surgery, Doctor Worthington also let me stitch up the outer layers of skin. He hovered over my shoulder the entire time, but I knew what I was doing. I've practiced different stitches thousands of times over the years. It went as smoothly as it possibly could have, and I walked out of surgery feeling on top of the world, like nothing could stop me or bring down my mood.

Until I checked my phone and saw there was still no word from Duke.

I didn't have time to sit around and mope, so after work I headed home and started on my homework after getting a bite to eat. Mountains of schoolwork have been piling up over the weeks while I've been sneaking around with Duke, nonchalantly putting it off and pushing it to the back of my mind. Nothing else has felt like it mattered, but today was a reminder that life goes on outside of Duke. I have huge goals I aim to achieve, and nothing will stand in my way.

I will be a veterinarian with my own private clinic someday. I just have to get there.

No man, inconvenience, or hurdle will stop me, especially not Duke.

I pull out my animal science textbook and flip it open to the page I have bookmarked. Flipping through the pages, I realize I have seventy-four pages to read tonight in addition to all of the other work I've let sit for too long. Pushing Duke to the back of my mind, I dive into the book, studying page after page until I lose track of time. I learn all about the psychology of dogs and why they behave the way they do. A lot of it feels like a recap after a decade of self-research, but it's always good to polish up. I did learn that petting a dog for fifteen minutes can lower blood pressure by ten percent.

After animal psychology homework, I move on to zoology, which I don't love as much, but it does intrigue me. I work late into the night, taking in as much information as I can while I'm feeling motivated. Sometime after midnight, I fall asleep in bed with several thick textbooks open beside me.

I didn't hear from Duke today, so I don't know what that means for us. Why would he ghost me after last night?