Chapter 9
1358 Words
Wednesday arrived with bright sunshine, making Tuesday’s rain feel like a distant memory.
Ava pulled into the campus parking lot a few minutes earlier than usual. She had promised herself she would spend thirty minutes in the library before class instead of rushing in at the last second with a coffee balanced on top of her notebook.
Small changes, she reminded herself.
Not because anything was wrong.
Just because she wanted to feel a little less rushed every day.
She locked her car and started toward campus, smiling when she spotted Oliver lounging beneath the maple tree near the apartment complex entrance. The cat wasn’t supposed to be this far from home, but Oliver had apparently decided campus life suited him.
“You are absolutely terrible at staying where you belong,” she said, kneeling to scratch behind his ears.
Oliver purred loudly before strolling away as if he had important business elsewhere.
“I guess that’s goodbye.”
“A friend of yours?”
Ava looked up.
An older campus security officer stood nearby with a coffee in one hand.
“The cat?”
He nodded.
“He follows students around every morning.”
“He belongs at my apartment complex.”
“So you’re the one who feeds him.”
Ava laughed.
“Am I that obvious?”
“He waits for you every day.”
She smiled.
“I guess we’ve both gotten into a routine.”
The officer nodded thoughtfully.
“Funny how the smallest routines become the ones we miss.”
His words lingered with her long after she walked away.
By the time she reached the library, the building was still quiet.
She found her favorite seat beside the large windows and unpacked her notebook.
Before opening it, she pulled out her camera.
She hadn’t meant to bring it.
It had simply found its way into her backpack that morning.
She scrolled through the photographs she’d taken over the weekend.
The ducks.
The little girl chasing pigeons.
The elderly couple sharing ice cream.
The more she looked at them, the more she realized something.
She hadn’t taken a single picture of a landmark.
Not one famous building.
Not one perfectly framed sunset.
Every photograph was of people.
Real moments.
Real smiles.
Maybe that’s what she’d always loved most.
People.
“Mind if I look?”
Ava looked up to find Emily setting her backpack on the chair across from her.
“I didn’t know you were into photography.”
“I used to be.”
Emily picked up the camera carefully after Ava nodded.
“These are really good.”
“They’re just snapshots.”
“No.”
Emily pointed to the picture of the little girl.
“She’s happy.”
Then another.
“The couple.”
She smiled.
“They’re looking at each other instead of the camera.”
Emily handed the camera back.
“That’s hard to capture.”
Ava felt warmth spread across her cheeks.
“Thanks.”
“You should enter the photography contest.”
Ava laughed.
“You’re the second person who’s said that.”
“Then maybe you should listen.”
She thought about Ethan mentioning the contest.
Now Emily.
Maybe they were just being encouraging.
Still…
The idea didn’t seem quite as impossible as it had two days ago.
Their conversation ended when the library clock chimed eight-thirty.
“Come on,” Emily said.
“If we’re late again, Professor Lewis is going to make us answer every question.”
Ava laughed.
“That’s probably true.”
The morning passed quickly.
Professor Lewis spent nearly two hours discussing patient communication, emphasizing that technical skills meant very little if patients didn’t feel heard.
As the lecture ended, he looked around the room.
“I have one question before you leave.”
The students paused.
“What makes a great nurse?”
Hands slowly went up.
“Knowledge.”
“Experience.”
“Attention to detail.”
Professor Lewis nodded after each answer.
Then he looked toward Ava.
“Miss Monroe?”
She hadn’t raised her hand.
She blinked in surprise.
“I think…”
The room grew quiet.
“I think people remember how you make them feel.”
Professor Lewis smiled.
“Exactly.”
He looked back at the class.
“They may not remember every medication.”
“They may not remember every procedure.”
“But they’ll remember whether they felt safe.”
Ava lowered her eyes, embarrassed by the attention.
As students packed their bags, Professor Lewis stopped her near the door.
“You’ve got good instincts.”
She smiled politely.
“I just answered a question.”
“You answered it from the heart.”
He handed her a brochure.
The front read:
Willow Creek Children’s Hospital Volunteer Program
“I think you’d enjoy this.”
She looked down at it.
“You really think I’d fit there?”
“I don’t.”
He smiled.
“I know you would.”
She tucked the brochure into her notebook.
“Thank you.”
Outside, the sidewalks buzzed with students changing classes.
Ava checked her phone.
Still no messages from Mason.
She frowned slightly.
He’d warned her this week would be busy.
Still…
She missed hearing from him.
As she crossed the quad, she noticed a crowd gathered near the student center.
Curious, she wandered closer.
A local animal rescue organization had brought several dogs to campus hoping students might volunteer or foster.
One golden retriever immediately trotted toward her.
“Oh, hello.”
The dog leaned against her legs, tail wagging furiously.
“I think he picked you,” one volunteer laughed.
Ava scratched behind his ears.
“What’s his name?”
“Cooper.”
The name sounded familiar.
Very familiar.
Before she could remember why, another voice spoke behind her.
“I had a feeling he’d find you.”
She turned.
Ethan stood a few feet away, holding the dog’s leash.
Her eyes widened.
“He’s yours?”
He laughed.
“No.”
“My neighbor travels a lot.”
“I help out sometimes.”
Cooper barked happily before sitting directly on Ava’s foot.
“I think he’s decided we’re friends.”
“I don’t think either of us gets much say in that.”
Ava laughed.
“I guess not.”
She knelt to pet the dog again.
“He remembered you.”
“I remembered him too.”
Ethan smiled.
“He remembers everyone who’s kind to him.”
Ava looked up.
“That’s a nice way to judge people.”
“I think dogs are usually right.”
She couldn’t argue with that.
The volunteer called Ethan’s name from across the booth.
“Can you help me for a minute?”
“Be right there.”
He looked back at Ava.
“It was good seeing you.”
“You too.”
As he walked away, Cooper glanced back over his shoulder as if reluctant to leave.
Ava watched them disappear into the crowd.
She couldn’t explain it.
Every conversation with Ethan was simple.
Comfortable.
He never seemed to expect anything from her.
He simply enjoyed talking.
And somehow…
So did she.
Her phone buzzed.
She smiled automatically, expecting Mason.
Instead it was Chloe.
Lunch?
Ava replied immediately.
Meet you at the student union in ten.
She slipped her phone back into her pocket and continued walking.
She didn’t notice Ethan glance back one last time before helping the volunteer load supplies into a truck.
Ben, who had arrived to help, nudged his shoulder.
“You’ve officially graduated from strangers.”
Ethan looked confused.
“What?”
“She smiled before she saw the dog.”
He smiled quietly.
“I noticed.”
Ben folded his arms.
“I think she’s starting to trust you.”
Ethan watched Ava disappear into the student center.
“I hope she trusts herself first.”
Ben didn’t say anything.
For the first time, he understood.
This had never been about Ethan wanting Ava to notice him.
It had always been about wanting Ava to see herself the way everyone else already did.
And that kind of love couldn’t be rushed.
- Writer
