tidal wave

•~• chapter two •~•

For Conrad, the past four years had dragged. He'd hidden himself away in California, only finding out through Jeremiah a week before he started there that Bre had transferred to Johns Hopkins. At first, he was relieved maybe the time apart would help them both grow and they'd eventually make it back together.

Then after a few months when she didn't reach out, and he heard through Belly and Laurel she'd started seeing someone it hit him like a truck. She was moving on. In his mind it was all an excuse when she ended things in the Motel room, was she just lying to be able to leave him and start a new life? But then he realised that wasn't who Bre was.

He threw himself into his studies just like Bre. He'd met this girl called Agnes at a study group and as much as he would say how much she was annoying, he enjoyed spending time with her. She didn't just know him as the boy who lost his Mom. Or as someone who's known him forever. She knew him as the current Conrad, someone who didn't want to talk sometimes or who wanted to be in the back. And she liked getting to know him. For Conrad, it wasn't even a question whether he'd move on, because he knew he couldn't. So he kept Agnes close as a friend, a very loyal friend. The pair became quite close, supporting one another through their studies. Then came Finn, they'd randomly bumped into each other at the library and then one day just kept on studying together. Then Finn invited Hattie and Keegan. And the rest was history.

Even though Bre wasn't there he could see why they were her close friends. And every so often they'd bring up her name and it would give him even more reason to live.

He thought at first that they were all taking pity on him being friends, but then came friends-giving and they invited him and Agnes to come. That was the first time that Conrad felt like they were his friends. They all laughed and drank way too much and then came the next morning and they all went for breakfast burritos and a run through the park. And even though Bre wasn't there he knew she was behind it. He'd overheard Hattie and Keegan on the phone with her at one point and he knew it was her idea to invite them. And that was when he decided he would wait. Because truthfully he knew he couldn't love anyone the way he loved Bre.

When Conrad got the call about the dedication he knew he had to go and that was what made him avoid the subject altogether. He'd spoken in therapy a lot about how going back to Cousins didn't feel right. They dove right into the topic. Then came the day he got the job at a clinic with Agnes. And there was his excuse. Although Bre and Conrad hadn't spoken in months, they both felt too much anxiety about going back.

Conrad was walking through the halls of the clinic with Agnes, and the rest of the med students were listening intently. He'd messed up the first patient so he was making notes on everything and Agnes was watching intently. Agnes was smart, easily smart and she rarely messed up. Which always kept Conrad on his toes, he enjoyed the competition.

His day was going as the day would, he was labelling blood vials until he got a phone call from Belly in tears. Steven had been hit by a car. Conrad felt the walls close around him.

"Tell me exactly what the doctor said" Conrad asked, Belly explained in medical terms what she'd been told. It was the words that he'd had drilled into him since starting college, and he used them to help his family. The time went quickly after the phone call with Belly. But one person stood out in his mind. Bre.

"Hi Dr Namazy, I have a question?" Conrad said asking politely. He wanted to help somehow even if it was from across the country.

"Go ahead" The doctor responded impatiently.

"Uh my friend has got into a car accident and he's being treated at Providence General, is there any way you could do to find out how he's doing?" Conrad sighed letting the words flow out of his mouth.

"I'm sorry about your friend. I have a long-time friend who's the head of neurology at Providence I'll make a call. Do you need to leave to see him?" The doctor asked tilting her head. But Conrad shook his head. He was where he needed to he.

"No I'm good here, it's a distraction" Conrad nodded going back to labelling results. It gave him a breath of fresh air to be doing some good. Even if it was just labelling.

The rest of the day seemed to fly by, and he and Agnes were waiting for approval from Dr Namazy. Conrad felt like even though it was his first day he could make a real difference here.

"Who labelled this wrong?" She asked Agnes to look at Conrad and he knew he had messed up. It was when he was on the phone with Belly that he didn't pay enough attention.

"Oh that was me, I'll just change it" Conrad said picking up the vial.

"No, you're done. Mistakes mean you aren't ready. You could've cost a patient time. And you are wasting mine. You aren't ready" The doctor said with confidence to Conrad. Agnes looked at Conrad not knowing what to do. He'd been working for this for months. And he became the first day med student to drop out. He thought he was better than that.

The old Conrad would have hidden himself away and pushed it down. But Conrad called Finn and the girls and they were going to the bar.

Somehow they'd managed to down fifteen beers by the time Agnes had finished her shift. One thing Conrad loved about this group was that they never gave him pity. Not ever.

"So truths, how many times have you guys been in Love?" Agnes asked quietening the whole group. Finn shook his head, Hattie and Keegan holding hands even tightly.

"Finn?" Agnes asked jokingly.

"Don't ask me, I don't think I've ever truly been in love" Finn said shrugging downing his beer. Finn was always about hooking up with random people so the group knew his answer.

"Girls?" Agnes questioned. They both giggled. Explaining growing up knowing they liked girls and then finding each other and that was their story.

Then it was Conrad's turn.

"How many times lover boy?" Agnes joked. The whole group looked at him. They all knew.

"Once" Conrad sighed taking a swig of his beer.

"And what was her name?" Agnes asked smiling. The group had seen her crush on Conrad but truly thought she'd gotten over it.

"Breanna" Conrad's face began to go a rosy red. Just speaking her name made him feel it all again. He was deep in love with a girl he hadn't seen or spoken to in months.

"Isn't that your brother's girlfriend's sister?" Agnes said confused. The rest of the group just focused on their own drinks not wanting to revisit one of the most painful parts of Conrad's story.

"Yeah, she uh yeah" Conrad stuttered not knowing what to say. The whole group moved on to whether Agnes had been in Love. But she hadn't.

"How did you know?" She asked the group. Hattie and Keegan just shrugged their shoulders.

"It's not like a light switch and you turn it on. It was like you know when you're half asleep and then you just aren't. Like that. Like one day I just woke up" Conrad sighed taking a swig of his drink. The rest of the evening consisted of them all arguing over where the best place for vacation was.

The evening ended with them all crashing on the floor in Hattie and Keegan's apartment. They had the biggest living room so they always ended up sleeping there. Well, they all slept apart from Conrad who was lying awake thinking of Bre and where she was. And whether she'd heard about Steven.

Then like how he fell in love with her he fell asleep. So easily, so effortlessly.