Would You Rather

31 - WYR: blow Fidan or complete your pre-lab (obvious choice)

FINLEY

Melissa is in the cadaver lab before me. It's the first time in a couple months that she's beaten me, but I'm so bogged down with other work that by the time I stumble into class on Monday morning, she's already got gloves and her lab coat on as well as her new acquisition: a synchronized swimmer's nose piece. She's convinced that if she doesn't smell the cadaver lab for a long time, she can go back to using cherry chapstick. Personally, I don't think they smell similar, but apparently the lab has ruined her favorite chapstick for her.

"A bit flustered today?" She asks, head down looking at something. Her voice sounds insane with the nose piece.

"Flustered is a good word for it." I dump my binders on the table. I'm so busy I haven't even seen Nat in our own house in three whole days. No Nat, no Bronson, no Darius, no Kit or Wiley or anyone. I barely saw Fidan last night between everything and it was barely a hookup. It didn't even get my head off of anything and he was so soft and supportive and I need him to go back to being a cocky dick that just wanted to fuck, lay around, fuck again, and leave. He still comes over for just sex but now it's sex and he's hugging me and the sex is... kissy and shit. I didn't sign up for this!

Melissa is smiling, "do you even know that you have a visible hickey?" It really does sound like a middle school boy is making fun of me with her nose pinched like that.

"What?"

"Yeah, low neck." She taps her own neck and I slap my hand over my throat.

"That little-" I whip out my phone to see it in the camera. "I'm going to kill him."

"So you and Fidan actual Koskinen are still going strong?"

I whip around our station, putting on goggles and gloves and my coat. "Yes."

"You're basically dating now, right? Like it's been a while of this."

"I'm not dating him." I'm tying my hair up, barely, and looking at the notes she's already taken. "What are we doing today? Nothing important, I hope? Nothing important on Wednesday in class, either, right?"

"I mean, probably not."

"Good, great, ugh." I set my head in my hands. "This conference was such a bad idea."

"Girl, you're going to a conference to give a presentation. Do you know how many hot science babes are going to be there? Oodles. Not like you need it, though, you're basically set to start trophy girlfriending if you want to right this instant. Ooh, the things I'd do to be fucking an NHL'er."

"I'm not his girlfrie- trophy girlfriending? Is that a thing? What the fuck?"

Melissa shrugs. "It's the whole thing, dude, with the cute little jackets and social media posts? Some people treat it like a job."

"A job? Are you joking?"

We're working on kidneys today, I believe. I haven't read the prelab. The first time in four years and I haven't prepared for a lab beforehand.

I was going to prepare, I realize, looking at Mel's printout, and the thought bothers me enough that I get my phone out again, opening up my calendar app with the knuckle on my pinky to avoid getting human innards on my screen.

9pm, Sunday: review for anatomy lab.

9pm yesterday I had Fidan actual Koskinen's dick in my mouth.

"You're really unprepared for this." Melissa says, still sounding like she's more congested than someone without a nose. "I'm like, actually helping. What happened, girl?"