Medicine Man (Page 31)

I look around the room and my gaze falls on a brunette who was admitted at the same time as me. In fact, I remember seeing the same fear, same pale complexion on her face as mine during those first few days, while we were trying to get adjusted to this new place, new meds, new rules, away from the only life we’ve known. Everyone looked like an enemy then. A threat. The Heartstone Effect.

I smile at her when she catches my eyes. She looks much better now. I wonder if I look better to her as well.

Roger and Annie are huddled in the corner talking like old friends; I think it’s a good day for them. A tech is trying to get a patient from The Batcave to eat something. A girl from my floor is simply staring down at her food, looking like she’s going to cry. I think she’s having a bad day.

Everyone explodes or implodes in this place. That doesn’t mean they are crazy. Crazy is a useless word anyway.

They are my friends and I missed them too.

“So, what’d I miss?” I ask, and Renn launches into a lengthy summary of this week’s events.

She tells me about all the gossip: A couple of nurses getting into an argument. Annie and Roger might be secretly dating each other. They looked pretty cozy in the TV room last night. Not to mention, right now. Snuggling without snuggling.

“What? That’s completely wrong information. Lisa from 2F? She’s the one dating Roger. I saw them exchange looks the other day,” I point out.

“The other day was last week. Things have changed around here.” Renn shrugs, and then she’s about to say something else, something super important if her wide eyes and eager expression are anything to go by, but things sort of come to a halt when someone walks in through the doors.

A new guy.

He’s not walking in, more like swaggering in, with long, lazy steps. His hands are shoved inside the pockets of his faded jeans as his eyes run across the space. People are watching him openly, but this guy doesn’t seem to care. In fact, when he makes eye contact with Roger, he tips his chin in greeting, but Roger only glares at him and looks away. The new guy doesn’t mind.

“Who’s that?” I ask the table, still watching him as he gets into the breakfast line.

The girl in front of him turns back and checks him out from top to bottom. I can’t see what his reaction is, but the lines of his shoulders say that he’s relaxed and unbothered.

I guess everyone’s getting a little territorial with the arrival of the newcomer.

“Oh, he’s the new guy, I think,” Penny answers, staring at him as well.

“When’d he arrive?” I ask, thinking how come I missed that too.

“Yesterday,” Vi murmurs.

Once the guy’s done loading his breakfast on his tray, he makes his way to the empty tables, and decides on the one diagonal to us.

Actually, it’s not as if he decides on it by discarding all the other options. It’s like this is the place he’s been wanting to sit in since he entered the dining hall. Which is curious because, well, he turned to face the room, his eyes going to the empty table he’s occupying right now, and then his eyes went to our table. Renn, specifically.

It’s curious because Renn wasn’t even facing him. She was focused on stabbing her breakfast while this new guy kept his eyes on her, with a very tiny micro-smile as he walked to the chair and plopped down.

“Do you know him?” I ask Renn.

She stiffens, but questions innocently, “Who?”

“You know who. Why’s he staring at you?”

She plops a piece of fruit in her mouth and shrugs. “How do I know why he’s doing what he’s doing?”

I frown at her, completely confused. “What?”

“What?”

I open my mouth and close it, and open it again. “What’s going on? Why are you acting weird?”

“I’m not acting weird.”

Penny jumps in. “You so are.”

Vi nods.

“Shut up. I’m not.” Renn shifts in her seat, her eyes planted resolutely away from the new guy whose eyes are pinned firmly at her.

“Why aren’t you looking back at him? He’s handsome.” I turn to the girls to get confirmation. “Right?”

Penny nods. “I mean, yeah. If you’re into dark hair and dark eyes and good bone structure.”

“Exactly.” I nod too. “He’s got good bone structure. You don’t get that often.”

Good bone structure and dark hair remind me of someone but I squash that thought because this is about Renn, not me.

“Stop it. I’m trying to eat my breakfast,” Renn snaps.

“You hate your breakfast,” Vi offers.

“Ohmigod, has the impossible happened?” Penny shuts her book and gives the conversation her full attention. “Are you not interested in a human of the opposite sex?”

“Do you want me to slap you? ‘Cause I’m not afraid to slap you,” Renn mutters, darkly.

“Hey, quit harassing her,” I tell the girls. “Renn doesn’t have to like every good-looking guy. She can hate some.”

She sits back, waving her hand at me as if acknowledging my statement. “Thank you.”

I smirk. “Yeah, so why do you hate him? Did he do something to you?” I sit up, suddenly getting serious. “Oh my God. What’d he do to you?”

The three of us, apart from Renn, focus on the guy who’s sprawled in his seat, popping grapes, watching us, like we’re a movie or something. He’s still got that little smirk on his mouth. Grudgingly, I admit that he does have good bone structure. Not to mention his hair’s all messy, strands falling over his forehead in careless abandon.

Even so, we’ll kick his ass if he did something to Renn.

“No way! Renn! You know you can complain, right?” Penny’s all charged up now.

“Yes, we can go right now,” I say, determined.

I’m ready to stand when Renn almost shouts, “It’s nothing, you crazy idiots.” At last, she looks at the new guy. “Hey, asshole. Stop staring at me. I told you I’m not interested.”

“You told him?” Penny’s confused.

So am I. “When did this happen? How much have I missed?”

The guy isn’t afraid or deterred. His smirk only grows, overcoming his entire mouth. He crosses his arms across his chest, and I see a peek of tattoos circling his biceps, under his black t-shirt.

“Tell me your name and I’ll stop,” he says in a voice that sounds lazy, just like his demeanor. Careless and reckless and all the less-es.

“My name’s none of your business,” Renn snaps.

He takes a sip of his juice and leans forward. “Yeah, I thought that too. But then, last night you came to me and you started stripping. I didn’t wanna interrupt you and ask then. That would’ve been rude,” he explains. “And the name I’ve been calling you in my head is probably turning my mom in her grave. She taught me to never objectify women. So yeah. Tell me your name. That’s the least you could do after interrupting my sleep.”

To say that we’re all shocked is an understatement. The tables around us have gone quiet. Well, they weren’t talking much to begin with because mostly everyone has been focused on the new guy. But still. Now, the place has gone completely silent, or rather the pocket in which we’re situated has.

Penny’s gaping. Vi’s pressing her lips together to keep from laughing out loud. And well, I’m the same way. Because the impossible has happened. Renn’s blushing. She’s gone as red as her hair.