The Professor - Ch. 9.3

“Good afternoon, Bambi. How are you today?” William asked, sounding casual, but looking anything but that as he sat down opposite her on a stainless steel stool.

“I’m feeling fine, Dr. Johansson. Are you well? Your face is all red,” Bambi replied, staring at his fair complexion with concern.

“I’m well, just a little hot right now. Thanks for asking,” William said, before turning to look at Aurelia, who was sitting in the blue cushioned chair by the unused hospital bed. “And who may I ask is this?”

Like you don’t know, big spender, Aurelia mused, recalling how much money Willy used to put in her G-strings and thongs on a regular basis. How many lap dances he usually requested on a given night.

“That’s my friend and fellow classmate, Aurelia Bunting,” Bambi shared, turning to her classmate with a warm smile. “We’re both chemistry majors at AU. She’s been very instrumental in keeping my spirits up during this whole ordeal.”

“I see. Nice to meet you, Aurelia. We all need people like you around to help brighten up our lives,” William said, his gaze lingering a little bit too long on his favorite exotic dancer.

“Nice to meet you, too, doctor,” Aurelia replied with a cordial nod and a smile that she had to force across her lips.

Why oh why did Bambi have to volunteer so much of her personal information? And what was Willy going to do with that information? Aurelia could only hope that the distinguished doctor wasn’t some kind of stalker, but rather a relatively decent man that just needed to get his libido stroked every now and then.

Unaware of the dilemma she just put her friend in, Bambi grinned knowingly at the smitten look on her widowed doctor’s face. Who would have thought that Dr. Johansson would develop an instant crush on Aurelia? But then again, a lot of men developed crushes on the V.I. native, including the man Bambi had a crush on – Claude Greenman.

Actually Bambi was secretly in love with Claude. Had been since sophomore year. He was the same guy that she was working extra hard to fully recover for so that she could actively pursue.

Although many of her traditional Vietnamese elders might frown upon a woman pursuing a man, Bambi did not hold to those ideals. She didn’t want to be submissive and delicate like her mother, letting the man take the more dominant role. As a Vietnamese American, she wanted to be strong and able to vocalize her feelings to the man of her choosing.

Plus, that car accident taught Bambi a very important lesson. It taught her that life really was short, subject to end at any moment. That she had to seize all the happiness she could get out of life while she could. She wanted to seize that happiness with Claude. That’s if Aurelia hadn’t submitted to his charms by then.

Maybe I can hook her up with Dr. Johansson instead. He’s not too much older than her, Bambi thought, estimating the handsome man to be in his mid-forties.

At the first opportunity she would ask her aunt about Dr. Johansson’s likes and dislikes. Then she’d use that knowledge to help nudge Aurelia along a different romantic path. A path that was far, far away from Claude.

© 2009 by Mi’Chelle Dodson/Suprina Frazier