Nick
"..."
The entire booth erupted into a loud chorus of cheers and laughter, someone clapping their hands so hard it echoed over the music.
I let out a long, quiet sigh into my glass, feeling a sudden flare of heat at the back of my neck, and took another drink.
The conversation rolled on from there, shifting into bad dates, terrible exes, and embarrassing hookups.
Everyone had a story to throw into the pile. I kept my mouth shut, deflecting smoothly whenever someone tried to pull me into the mess.
Then Etienne leaned back, looking at me over his glass. "Why'd you become a doctor anyway?"
I opened my mouth to give the standard answer, the one about helping people, the one I used for interviews and hospital newsletters but the words died in my throat. I sat there for a second, my mind going completely blank.
It was a question I had been asked a hundred times, yet sitting in this booth, under these flashing lights, the real answer felt weirdly heavy.
