Pretending Perfection

Teresa Dr. Teresa Patton sat pensively as her roommate took a shower. They had three rooms: Pippa and Gisselle in one, two other assistants in another, and Melanie in hers. She wasn’t sure if she was all that glad to be paired with Melanie rather than one of her staff. She appreciated Melanie for saving the day, but she didn’t know her like she knew her staff. Also, Melanie seemed… well… kind of different. She wasn’t sure what it was about her that was different, or if it was even a bad thing. It was just that she wasn’t used to spending the night in a hotel room with somebody she didn’t know very well. Melanie seemed harmless enough, though perhaps a bit eccentric. But was Melanie smart? Was she honest? Was she fair? The dentist simply had no way of knowing. Her energy and behavior seemed rather youthful, though she didn’t seem to be lacking in intelligence. All she knew for sure was that she seemed to like colorful and somewhat youthful clothing and was a rather beautiful woman. She had electric blue eyes and long black hair that was so curly Teresa could just imagine how long it would be if it were pulled straight. The dentist yawned. It seemed like it was a lot later than it actually was. After the police had escorted them to their homes to gather some personal belongings, they were brought to the hotel. They were fortunate enough to get three rooms situated at the very end of the top floor, where an officer remained seated outside at all times. She had a mix of feelings. She was grateful, though she was frustrated. Gisselle had worked for her for many years and was such a sweetheart. She was more than glad that she hadn’t been harmed along with anybody else. She knew, however, that the publicity this would bring might really hurt business. Furthermore, it frustrated and annoyed her to be put out as she was by being thrown in a hotel. It made her feel like the guy was controlling her—and, well, the whole damn situation for that matter. She appreciated the fact that an undercover officer would be guarding her business while she was tending to patients, but it was a hell of a way to live. Not that she blamed Gisselle or anything like that. After all, it certainly wasn’t Gisselle’s fault. She just felt like a fish in a bowl with a cat constantly peering down upon her. Melanie emerged from the bathroom in a pink cotton sleep shirt that fell to mid-thigh. Steam from the bathroom wafted out after her. Her hair was piled up in a towel. “Oh, hey. You’re here now,” she said. “Yeah, they just brought me in.” “Find out anything from Gisselle that might help catch this guy?” “A little bit,” she said. “The guy has been wanting to get back together with Gisselle, but when she told him she wasn’t interested, she didn’t think he would take it this hard.” “Is he the father of her son?” “No.” Melanie plopped herself down in a plush chair and said, “That’s interesting. Guys don’t usually go for ready-mades.” Teresa glanced at her quizzically. “You know, ready-made families?” “Yeah, sometimes they don’t,” she said, not sure if she should be offended or amazed by Melanie’s bluntness. “So why do you think he suddenly freaked out like that?” Teresa shrugged. “I guess only he knows.” “I wonder how long we’ll have to be here,” Melanie wondered out loud. “No clue,” the dentist said in a tired tone of voice. “Hopefully, we’ll be able to get this wrapped up soon.” “You know what really sucks?” “What’s that?” “It’s not over when it’s over. We’re still going to have to go to court to give witness testimony.” “Yes, I’m sure we will.” “Hopefully, the guy will do us a favor and kill himself first.” Teresa just gazed at Melanie. She didn’t have an answer to that one, although she couldn’t deny that the woman truly did have a point. His death would certainly make things easier for all who were involved, as well as a lot safer. Melanie went into the bathroom to brush out her hair. She then blew it dry and put it in the long braid she was used to sleeping with. Teresa tried to lose herself in a book she was reading on her Kindle but found she had to reread the same paragraph over and over to get anything to sink in. “I guess I’ll send a few emails,” Melanie said. “That way, people will know what’s going on and hopefully not worry so much about me.” “Just remember to be careful about not disclosing our location, just as the police warned us not to.” “Oh, don’t worry. My lips are sealed.” A few minutes of silence went by, and then Teresa suddenly found herself idly curious to the point that she could no longer keep quiet. “Melanie?” “M-hmm.” “Mind my asking how you’ve been since losing your husband? I mean, I know that has obviously had to be very hard for you, but I was just wondering how you’re holding up and where you’ve been living. I know you guys bought a house a few years ago, and I was wondering if you’re still there or what.” “It’s one of those things where I actually have to try to block out all the memories I can, otherwise I will go completely out of my mind. I know a lot of people try to hang on to memories and cherish them and relive them and all that stuff, but I just can’t do that right now. Maybe someday in the future, I will be able to, but for now, it is best for me to keep him out of sight and out of mind.” “Oh,” the dentist said regrettably, “I’m sorry I brought it up then.” “Oh, no, no, don’t be. It’s fine that you asked. You didn’t know, and everybody handles different things in different ways. For me, ignorance is bliss. So much so that I had to sell the house. I couldn’t stand to stay there even if I could afford the place myself, which I couldn’t. His place of employment had a life insurance plan on him, and while it’s just enough to live on, it’s definitely not much. It just barely pays for the necessities, but I manage to get by on that, plus I do a little online work, and that helps supplement things.” “As an author with a couple of books for sale on Amazon, do you make much money? And if this is none of my business, you can tell me to shut up,” Teresa quickly added with a smile. “Not at all. It’s fine. But no, I don’t make much money writing. Very few writers do unless they have their books turned into movies. The writing world is very black or white, and I can assure you that most of us are on the black side. I actually make a little more money writing articles, ads, descriptive things, and things like that for whoever needs or wants it done.” “So you’re pretty much freelancing?” Melanie nodded. “A writer for hire. Now, can I ask you a question?” “Of course.” “It seems you work something like 50 hours a week. How do you stand to work that many hours? Do you ever feel like you don’t have much of a life outside the clinic?” “Sometimes, but well, you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. I knew that upon getting into the health field, the crazy hours pretty much went hand-in-hand with it.” “At least the money is good, on the bright side.” “Oh, it definitely is. To make good money and really love what you do is a wonderful thing. So I can’t complain too much.” Teresa noted the thoughtful expression that took over Melanie’s lovely features. “I’m not sure what I’m going to do with myself. I mean, I know I’m not old, but I’m not exactly young anymore either.” Teresa gave a weak laugh. “Yes, at forty-five years of age, I know what you mean.” “Forty-five?” Melanie exclaimed in shock. “Oh wow, I thought you were in your 30s!” Teresa laughed again. “Hardly. I thought you were in your 20s. I was actually quite surprised when I learned that you’re in your late 30s.” “Yeah, that’s why my options are getting kind of limited. Can’t exactly be the exotic dancer I was 15 years ago.” Again, Teresa laughed. She first thought Melanie was joking. “At least what I’ve been doing the last year has kept my head above water. I may never make it back to Hawaii for another fun-filled, adventurous vacation there, and I may never live in a house again, but I’m surviving.” “Just where are you living anyway?” “In a dumpy little one-bedroom apartment in Roseville.” “Oh,” the doctor said with a nod. “Do any of your three kids live with you still?” “How did you know I have three kids?” Melanie rolled her eyes. “Do you really think I forgot to do my homework when searching for a dentist? It was in your bio.” Teresa smiled and said, “They’re all grown up and on their own now, and since I’m divorced, I have the house all to myself.” “Now that last part I didn’t know about, but I suppose you don’t exactly update your profile to say, Oops, my marriage didn’t exactly make it till death do us part. Sorry, folks.” Teresa couldn’t suppress a grin as her roommate rose from her chair to prepare for bed. This unfortunate experience in life just may turn out to be a rather interesting one as well.