The Heiress Bride

Chapter Fifteen: Easier Said Than Done

Chapter Fifteen: Easier Said Than Done

“Then why don’t you tell Chief that you want to become a doctor? I’m sure he’ll understand.” I whispered, silently glad that Pierce felt like he could confide in me.

“We have more in common than you think,” he smiled wistfully at me. “I am an orphan too.”

After a moment of silence, I whispered, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” he looked down, “I’m sort of used to it. And I’ve accepted that fact. Chief has been so nice to me since then.”

I reached out to him and tentatively touched his arm in comfort. After a slight pause I asked, “I’m sorry for being so blunt here, but I don’t see how this prevents you from telling Chief that you want to be a doctor.”

“This whole thing is really complicated, and sort of really silly.” Pierce sighed, “So, when I was a teenager, my little sister was diagnosed with some obscure, untreatable disease. As my parents had to see her grow up and become more frail and weak, they became more helpless. When she died several years ago, it tore my family apart.”

I listened silently, not knowing what to say, “I’m so sorry, Pierce. That must’ve been so hard to go through.”

Shaking his head, he whispered, “You have no idea.” His voice cracked a little at the end, but he quickly cleared his throat. It just hurt me to see how vulnerable a guy can be. “Not only were my parents completely walking corpses, devoid of all emotions, we were also in very serious debt. Who knew that medicine and doctors could cost so much money?” Pierce sighed again. “To cope with all the problems, my dad became a drunk. He would come home every day and start screaming at my mother.”

“Since my house felt so gloomy and dark, school was the only thing I could turn to. I guess I just took all my frustrations out on school and became sort of obsessed with it. It became my haven, where no drama or family matters could interfere with. But one day, when I came home from school, something wasn’t quite right.”

“There were two police cars parked in my driveway. And when I walked up to the front door, the policemen told me the news. Apparently, my dad came home early from work and had a few drinks. Then, he and my mother went out for a drive. I guess he was more drunk than he thought, and he swerved into a tree in order to avoid hitting a squirrel.” Pierce laughed humorlessly. Then, with a sudden change of emotion, he began to speak determinedly.

“So I thought that my whole life would’ve been different if my sister never got sick or if we’d had the cure to her sickness. For her, I promised myself that I would strive to become a doctor and save the lives of other kids, so their families won’t have to go through what mine did.”

I stared at him, completely awestruck. “Pierce, what you are doing is so admirable and caring. You should go for your dream. Tell Chief. I’m sure he will support everything you do.”

He let out an exasperated breath, “Melanie, I can’t! You don’t understand. Chief is not as nice and understanding as you think he is!”