CATARINA
At work on Wednesday,I was so tired I needed an afternoon espresso, so I met up with Pheobe in the cafeteria.
“So you’re literally married,” she said, holding my hand and looking at my ring. “I have to say, that is a crazy Vegas weekend twist I didn’t see coming.”
“Me either,” and then I squinted. “Wait a second. What about you and Chip?”
“We had a good weekend together. I mean, we had to do something since you two ditched us on Saturday night. Also, I’m still a little salty about not getting the invite to your wedding. I’m just going to be upfront.”
“Sorry,” I said, clearing my throat. “It just happened so fast. And we figured this would be, you know, like an informal thing.”
“And then the video went viral.”
“Right.”
“So you’re like a famous person, now. Kinda.”
I waved my hand in the air. “Eh, it’s my fifteen minutes of fame. I’m sure things will die down.”
She laughed. “The story has been running on a loop onEall week.” Squinting, she looked behind me. “Is that guyfilmingus?”
I turned and saw a college-age looking guy recording us.
“Hey, get lost, buddy!” Pheobe shouted. The man turned red-faced and walked away, quickly.
“Was he seriously just recording me?”
Pheobe shrugged. “Probably for his loser YouTube Channel or something. So anyway now that the camera is gone, I’d like to know the dirty details. Is he moving here?”
“No. We’re going to live separately for now.”
“That won’t be suspicious to immigration?”
“Well, we’re not exactly a traditional couple. He’s a sports star and I’m a doctor.”
“Power couple, yeah! Woohoo!” Pheobe smiled.
“What about you and Chip? Are you going to be following in our footsteps?”
“And getting married in a viral Vegas wedding? Most definitely!”
“Real funny,” I laughed.
“For real though. We’re keeping it super casual. Aren’t you worried about this long distance stuff? It’s tough. Oh, there’s my pager. I gotta run.” She stood up to go, then paused, turning to look at me.
“Cat,” she said. “I’m so damn glad you’re going to be here. I mean, the hospital just would have been a little less bright without you.”
“Thanks,” I said, my heart warming. I’d had similar conversations with several of my patients today.
While the weekend was the most fun I’d had in a long while, I had to power through the last few hours of the evening until I made it home just past nine to collapse into bed. I had been thrown off by the randomness of my schedule over the past few days.
Although it was good fun.
I grabbed my kindle from my nightstand and was about to start on a romance novel when an involuntary giggle escaped me.
Why did I still feel the need to read?
Myownlifehad become the number one romance drama in entertainment news today, yet it didn’t seem all that outlandish to me. I wondered to myself why I still wanted to read about other people’s romantic dramas tonight when my life was a crazier version of the Spanish telenovelas my grandmother used to watch when I was little.
