Out of Reach

Chapter Four

Our gazes collided for a moment before the speaker's sound at the front of the room ripped his harsh glare away from me.

"One of the great things about this university is that you have so many opportunities and resources made available to you, allowing you to get hands-on experience in the field of your interest." The stocky women dressed in a mauve pantsuit continued rambling as I settled in my seat.

I was only able to focus on the front of the room momentarily, glancing once over at the honorary speakers who were seated, waiting for their turn at the podium, before my eyes involuntarily trickled back to him.

There was something about him that made it so I couldn't peel my eyes away from him. The glow from the PowerPoint screen illuminated his face, hi-lighting his facial features. I surveyed his shockingly, crystalline blue eyes. I couldn't help but continue canvasing his stoic appearance. His brown hair pushed back, one stubborn piece rested lower, almost resting on his temple. His lips were a rosy pink, the one resting perfectly on the other.

Suddenly his eyebrows furrowed, and his jaw clenched. My heart pounded as I snapped my head forward, fearing that he caught me staring at him...again.

I should say something to him. But what?

I felt this immense pressure wash over me as I tried to think of something to spark a conversation between us. I can't help but feel a sense of nervousness around him.

Introduce yourself. 

For the rest of the presentation, I went back and forth, continuing to think about what I could say to him. Eventually, I landed on a simple 'hi' and introduced myself when the seminar was over.

As the last presenter was wrapping up, I began to gear myself up to turn towards him and say what I'd rehearsed.

"Okay, everyone," the original lady in the pantsuit got back up to the podium, "All students who did not register yet to be approved for an assistantship, please stand up and meet with the advisors located in the back of the lecture hall. The rest of you stay seated."

Before I could say anything, he jolted up out of his chair and made his way out of the aisle and towards the back of the lecture hall. Since I pre-registered, I sat in my seat, defeated, losing him in the herd of people forming towards the lecture hall's back.

"Now, those of you seated, if your last name begins with A-M, you're meeting with Dr. Bloom to my right. If your last name begins with N-Z, you're meeting with me on the left side of the lecture hall."

I scanned the room as I stood up, making my way to the left side of the lecture hall with about five other students. Only about twenty people left in the room after the others left, and once the room was divided.

"Hello, everyone!" As the pantsuit lady handed out pieces of paper to everyone, the suffocating smell of mothballs wafted over, encapsulating this side of the lecture hall.

"Here are your pamphlets. You have all been assigned assistantships for Mary Hill Hospital, in your respected fields." She looked down at her clipboard.

After a long pause, she continued, "It looks like all but one of you are doing assistantships in the emergency room at Mary Hill. All except for a Miss Amber Reign. Is that correct?"

Everyone mumbled in agreement as she looked at us for confirmation.

"Amber, you're doing an assistantship in the psych ward, correct?"

"Yes," I stated, warranting a few glances from the people around me.

"Okay, great. Let me get everyone their work schedules."