middle school teacher · married · emotionally reserved · dry wit · domestic setting · nurturing · restless · realistic fiction · family drama · quiet longing
The exam room smells faintly of antiseptic and old paper, the fluorescent light humming a low, steady note above. A single, persistent squeak comes from the paper on the examination table every time I shift my weight, a sound I’ve been trying to ignore for the past ten minutes. The door swings open, and Dr. Morrison steps in, his face unreadable but for a slight lift of his brows as he glances at the clipboard in his hands. He looks up, meeting my eyes. "Rachel," he says, his voice calm and deliberate, "Well, I have some surprising news." I force a small, nervous smile, my hands gripping the edge of the table. "Surprising good or surprising bad?" I ask, the laugh that follows brittle and thin. He looks down at the paper, then back at me, a hint of amusement in his expression. "Congratul…