Chapter 66 Dr Vance

Chapter 66 Dr Vance
Around 8:00 PM, my phone buzzed. It was a text from Jaxson.

Hey. Leo said you were in the lab late. Everything okay? Want me to bring you some food?

I looked at the text and smiled. A few months ago, I would have said No. I would have been too busy trying to be the perfect Vance daughter.
I’m in the library basement, I typed back. Bring me a sandwich. And maybe some extra pens. I have a lot of work to do.

Ten minutes later, I heard the heavy door of the basement creak open. Jaxson walked in, looking out of place among the giant medical books. He was wearing his team jacket, and he was carrying a brown paper bag.

He sat down across from me, looking at the piles of books and the diagrams of the brain I had drawn.

"Whoa," he whispered. "Are you becoming a brain surgeon tonight?"

"Something like that," I said, taking the sandwich from him. "I changed my project, Jax. I’m doing it on you."

Jaxson blinked. "On me? Like... as a science experiment?"

"As a study on how to save the game," I corrected him. "My dad wanted me to study how to make money. I told my professor I’d rather study how to keep players from getting permanent brain damage."

Jaxson’s expression softened. He reached across the table and took my hand. "That’s going to make your dad really mad, El. You sure you want to do that for me?"

"I’m not doing it just for you," I said. "I’m doing it for me. I’m tired of pretending I want a life that’s already been bought for me. I want to be a real doctor, Jax. A doctor who cares about the patient, not the paycheck."

Jaxson squeezed my hand. "You’re already a better doctor than anyone I’ve ever met."

"I’m not a doctor yet," I laughed. "I still have to pass this class. And my dad is probably calling Dr. Aris right now to complain."

"Let him complain," Jaxson said. "He can't take your brain, Elena. He can't take the work you’ve put in."

We sat in the quiet basement for a while, eating sandwiches and looking at medical diagrams. It wasn't a romantic date. It wasn't a fancy gala. It was just two people in a basement, fighting for a future that they actually wanted.

As I looked at Jaxson, I realized that my father’s world was built on shadows and names. But this, the cold library, the smell of old books, and the guy holding my hand, this was real.

I turned back to my notebook and started writing again. I had a lot of work to do before Friday. I had a presentation to give, a father to face, and a career to start.

But for the first time in my life, I wasn't scared of the future. I was ready for it.



The air outside the library was crisp and smelled like the promise of rain, but the cold didn't bother me.

My fingers were tucked firmly into Jaxson’s palm, and the warmth from his hand felt like the only thing keeping me grounded.

We walked slowly down the stone steps of the library. The campus was quiet at this hour, lit only by the soft yellow glow of the streetlamps.

Our shadows stretched out long and lean in front of us, overlapping as we walked close enough that our shoulders brushed with every step.

"You’re very quiet tonight, Dr. Vance," Jaxson teased, his voice low and vibrating in the quiet air. He squeezed my hand, pulling me just a little closer to his side.

I laughed, the sound puffing out like a small white cloud in the chilly air. "I’m just tired, Jax. My brain feels like it’s made of lead. I think I’ve looked at too many brain scans for one day."

Jaxson stopped walking. He didn't say a word. He just gently tugged on my hand until I turned to face him. We were standing under a massive oak tree, the leaves whispering above us in the wind.

He reached out with his free hand and tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. His fingers were calloused from hockey sticks and gym weights, but his touch was as soft as a breath.

"You’re amazing, you know that?" he whispered.

"I’m just a girl with a lot of homework," I whispered back, feeling my heart start to do that familiar, fluttering dance in my chest.

"No," Jaxson said, stepping into my space until there was no air left between us. "You’re the girl who just told the most powerful man in this city no because you believed in something. You’re the smartest person I’ve ever met. And somehow, you’re still standing here with me."

I reached up, resting my hands on his chest. I could feel the steady, strong thrum of his heart through his team jacket. "There’s nowhere else I’d rather be, Jaxson Miller."

He leaned down then. It wasn't the kind of kiss we had in the middle of a crowded party or the desperate, messy ones after a fight. This was slow. It was the kind of kiss that tasted like a promise.

His lips were warm and soft against mine, and for a few seconds, there was only the feeling of his arms wrapping around my waist and the way he sighed into the kiss, like he was finally home.

When we pulled apart, he didn't let me go. He rested his forehead against mine, his eyes closed. "I missed you today," he murmured. "Even when I was at practice, I kept looking at the bleachers, hoping to see you in your lab coat."

"I was busy saving the world, remember?" I joked, though my voice was shaky from the emotion of the moment.

"You’re saving my world," he corrected me.
He took my bag from my shoulder, swinging the heavy weight over his own back like it was nothing.

He grabbed my hand again, lacing our fingers together so tightly that it felt like we were one person. We started walking again, heading toward my dorm.

We didn't talk about the big game or the presentation. We laughed until our sides hurt, the sound echoing off the brick buildings.

When we reached the door to my dorm, he lingered for a moment. He didn't want to leave, and I didn't want him to go. He leaned down and gave me one last, quick kiss on the forehead.

"Go to sleep, El," he said, his eyes full of light. "You have to be sharp tomorrow if you're going to keep being a genius."

"Goodnight, Jax," I whispered, watching him turn and walk away into the darkness.

He looked back once, waving his hand before disappearing around the corner. I stood there for a minute, even after he was gone, just feeling the cold air on my face and the lingering warmth of his hand on mine.

For the first time in a long time, I just felt like a girl in love. And that was more than enough.