The Things We Buried

Chapter3

I stood outside Dr. Adesemoye’s office longer than I should have. His words from earlier kept echoing in my mind. I didn’t know what unsettled me more, the case itself or the fact that he had chosen me to see it. I raised my hand and knocked lightly on the door.

“Come in.”

His voice was calm, steady, impossible to ignore. I pushed the door open and stepped inside. His office was quieter than the rest of the hospital. The lights were low, the soft glow from his desk lamp casting warm shadows across the room. He sat behind his desk, sleeves rolled up slightly above his wrist, scrolling through his phone.

“Close the door, Melissa.” He said.

My name in his voice always did something strange to my chest. I shut the door behind me and walked towards the desk, placing the folder in front of him before sitting down. His eyes landed on me, and slowly his gaze moved from my eyes to my lips, then lower, before returning to my face again as if he’d caught himself doing something he shouldn’t.

“You wanted to see me?” I asked, trying to sound casual.

His mouth curved slightly. He picked up the folder I had dropped earlier and leaned back against the edge of the desk. Up close, I caught the faint scent of his cologne again, something warm and addictive. It made my thoughts blur.

“Did you read it?” He said, holding the folder loosely in one hand.

“It was a mistake,” I said. “One that shouldn’t have happened.”

Silence settled between us. The air in the room felt heavier somehow.

“And the doctor?” He asked.

“He missed something.”

His eyes glinted with amusement. He stepped toward me. Not much, but just enough to make my heart quiver. He walked around the desk slowly and stopped beside my chair. I suddenly became aware of how close we were.

“Sometimes,” he said softly, the difference between a good doctor and a ruined one is a single moment.”

He leaned forward slightly, close enough that his shoulder brushed mine. The contact was light, barely there, but I could feel myself smiling. I turned my head to respond and realized his face was only inches away from mine. For a second, neither of us moved. I noticed the intricate details about him. I could hear the slow rhythm of his breathing, veins faintly visible beneath warm skin. His jaw was sharp, dusted with just enough stubble to make him look dangerously handsome. I swallowed. The office suddenly felt smaller than it had been a moment ago.

“You’re staring,” he said quietly.

My heart skipped, and just as I was about to look away, he held my hand and looked at me, really looked at me. Those dark eyes locked onto mine, slow and deliberate like he was studying me, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly. I hated how that tiny smile made my stomach flip. I opened my mouth to answer, but the words got stuck somewhere between my chest and my throat. I could feel the warmth of his presence wrapping around me like an invisible thread pulling me tighter and tighter. His gaze dropped to my lips for a brief second while his hand caressed mine.

“You’re distracting,” he said.

The words were barely above a whisper, and my fingers curled up slightly at my sides. His smile deepened, his eyes flickered to my lips again, the space between us disappeared slowly, and before I knew it, his lips finally brushed against mine. Soft, hesitant. My heart slammed against my ribs as the kiss deepened, his hand sliding gently to my waist, pulling me closer until there was barely any space left between us. My mind completely went blank, all I could feel was him. A quiet sound escaped me before I could stop it. He paused for half a second, just enough for his forehead to rest lightly against mine. Our breathing was uneven.

“You’re trouble,” he murmured.

I barely had time to react before he kissed me again, deeper this time, more certain, like the restraint between us had finally snapped. A sharp knock at the door shattered the moment. We both froze, and then the door handle began to turn. The office door slammed open, and I jerked back instantly, my heart racing. A nurse stood in the doorway, slightly breathless.

“Doctor, there’s a problem.”

Daniel straightened slowly beside me, his expression shifting back into something controlled and unreadable.

“What happened?” he said calmly.

“It’s the patient from the file.”

My stomach dropped.

“What about them?” Dr. Adesemoye asked.

The nurse hesitated. “They’re missing.”

My pulse was still racing from the kiss, my lips still warm, and yet the word missing cut straight through the haze in my head. Daniel didn’t move; he stood beside me, tall and composed, his hands lightly tapping the edge of his desk as if the nurse had announced something routine.

“When was the last time anyone saw them?” He asked.

“About thirty minutes ago,” the nurse said quickly.

“The ward round had just finished. When we went back to check on them, the bed was empty.”

“Security?” Daniel asked.

“They’re checking the exits.”

“And the charts?” He asked while pacing around the office.

“It’s gone too.” The nurse shifted uneasily.

I glanced at him. There was something strange about the way he asked the questions. He didn’t panic, he wasn’t confused, almost like he knew what had happened.

“Lock down the ward,” he said. “No one leaves till security finishes checking.”

She nodded and hurried away, the door clicking shut behind her.

Silence fell over the office. The air still carried the heat of what had happened between us. I could still feel his hand on my waist, still feel the pressure of his lips, but something darker has crept into the room now; the warmth from earlier was replaced by something guarded.

Daniel cleared his throat lightly, breaking the silence.

“It’s probably nothing,” he said. “Patients wander sometimes, especially when they’re disoriented.”

I nodded, though something about the situation still felt strange.

“I hope they find them quickly,” I said.

“They will.” He sounded certain.

“You look like you’re trying to process everything that just happened.” A faint smile tugged at his mouth.

“I am not.”

He raised an eyebrow and chuckled softly. “You’re blushing.”

“I am not!” I said firmly.

“Go home, Melissa. It’s been a long day.”

I grabbed my bag, trying not to think about the way my body betrayed me anytime he stepped closer.

“Good night, sir.”

“Daniel,” he corrected gently.

“Good night... Daniel.”

Later that night, my apartment smelled like vanilla candles and the pasta Sarah had earlier cooked.

She was sitting cross-legged when I walked in, scrolling through her phone. The moment she saw my face, her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

“Why do you look like someone who has a big juicy secret to tell?”

“Nothing happened,” I said while putting my hair into a bonnet. I was never able to hide my emotions; my face always betrayed me.

Sarah gasped dramatically. “Oh my God, that means something definitely happened.”

I sighed and sat beside her. “It wasn’t a big deal.”

Her eyes lit up. “Was it the hot doctor?”

I hesitated. That was all the confirmation she needed.

“I knew it!” She squealed, grabbing my arm. “Tell me everything.”

“It wasn’t like that,” I said.

“So you didn’t kiss him?”

I paused. Sarah’s jaw dropped.

“YOU KISSED HIM?!” She stared at me as I had just announced I’d won the lottery.

“Keep your voice down!” I put my palm over her mouth. My eyes moved around the room like someone was listening to our conversation.

“Melissa… the mysterious handsome doctor you won’t stop talking about… actually kissed you?”

I groaned. “I do not talk about him that much. We kissed, but it was brief.”

Her grin widened. She leaned forward eagerly. “Was it good?”

Before I could answer, my phone buzzed with a notification.

“You’re doomed. You kissed a doctor you work with, that is literally the beginning of every dramatic love story.”

I rolled my eyes, but the memory of Daniel’s voice and the way he had looked at me earlier crept back into my mind.

Meanwhile, back at the hospital, the corridor outside Daniel’s office was quiet. Nurse Chinwe stood near the corner, her eyes moving back and forth anxiously.

“You shouldn’t have come to my office like that,” he said while walking towards her.

Chinwe folded her arms. “I didn’t have a choice; a patient disappeared.”

“That’s not the point, Melissa was here.”

Chinwe frowned slightly. “The new doctor?”

Daniel glanced down the empty hallway before continuing.

“She can’t know about this,” Daniel said firmly.

“We agreed we’d meet in the usual place if something like this happened again.”

Chinwe studied him for a moment. “This is becoming risky. What if someone starts asking questions?”

“I’ll handle it.”

Chinwe nodded and walked away down the hallway.

Daniel remained standing there for a moment, his expression thoughtful, before he finally turned and disappeared back into his office.