Gretchen didn’t care what Dr. Melendez was saying. She watched Jax leave, and then went back to bed with a heavy, sad sigh. She missed the days where a proclamation of love could solve everything, when it was everything.

“How are you feeling?” Dr. Melendez shined a penlight in her eyes, and she quickly decided that was the worst part of having a head injury.

She barely resisted the urge to swat away Dr. Melendez’s hand. “I’m fine. I have a slight headache and I puked once,” she said, pointing to the basin across the room. “You may want to have someone come and take that.”

“Are you still nauseous?”

“No.”

“Has the headache worsened or lessened?”

“It’s about the same since I woke up.”

“What’s the last thing you remember before your seizure?”

She stared at the empty doorway. “Jax leaving.”

“Were you emotional?”

“Yes.”

Dr. Melendez let out a heavy sigh, clearly disappointed. “I’m going to adjust your meds a bit and prescribe you something to help keep you calm.”

“I don’t want it,” Gretchen said firmly. “I’ll be fine without it.”

Dr. Melendez looked at her sympathetically. “There’s nothing wrong with taking medication for help.”

“I have nothing against medication, I’ll even take the prescription and fill it if necessary. But I’m going to focus on fixing the things that are upsetting me instead.”

Dr. Melendez pulled her notepad and a prescription pad from her jacket pocket. She scribbled on both before handing a small blue slip to Gretchen. “Fill it and keep it handy.”

“I will.” Gretchen noticed a sparkle on Dr. Melendez’s left hand. “You’re engaged.”

Dr. Melendez peeked at her own ring. “I am,” she said with a blissful smile. “My boyfriend proposed over the weekend. I was completely surprised.”

Boyfriend. Gretchen shook her head and laughed. “Congratulations.” Dr. Melendez continued taking notes and checking Gretchen’s vitals. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.” Dr. Melendez wrapped her stethoscope around her neck and held both ends.

“Have you ever considered using an iPad?”

Dr. Melendez looked at her oddly. “For what?”

“Your notes.”

“I’ve been handwriting my notes since my first year in med school. You know the saying,” Dr. Melendez said, putting the pads back in her pocket, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll have an orderly come in to clean that up. You can get changed back into your clothes. I’m sending you home shortly.”

Gretchen spotted her bag of belongings on a chair. “That’s it?”

“Do you miss your usual lengthy stay?” Dr. Melendez said with a smirk. “Your tests came back fine, and I don’t see any reason to keep you. Our work here is done for now. You should arrange for a ride, or is Jax coming back for you?”

“She’s not,” Gretchen said sullenly. “I’ll call Amanda.”