"You and me, we're bumper cars. The more I try to get to you, the more we crash apart." —Alex & Sierra.

••

Blaze and I sit in silence for what feels like forever. He hasn't said anything at all to me, and I say nothing to him either. I don't want to annoy him because that will only result in him leaving me here alone.

I had forgotten that another reason I hate clinics and hospitals is because of the long periods of waiting with the lame provision of outdated magazines and free coffee. I want to feel sorry for Kite and his fractured rib, but how can I when he was the one who placed me in this position in the first place?

The doors to the clinic open and a pregnant lady ambles into the room with a handbag in her hand. The seats are all taken, and she's visibly in more need of one than I am. I gesture to stand from my chair when Blaze gets up before me.

"You can have my seat," he says to her.

The lady smiles and tells him thanks before she sits in his spot with a tired sigh.

I look over at him as he goes to stand next to the wall, leaning his back against it and gazing down at his shoes, oblivious to my pair of confused eyes.

I thought he didn't care for anyone, but he just got up and gave a lady his seat? While in the eyes of most people that is the normal courtesy for a man to do, Blaze's Sociopathy does not make him empathetic.

But it could just be logic, right? He's in a room with so many people so he deemed it the right thing to do so that no one would find him outlandish. Or could it just be that somewhere deep down, his humanity is coming back?

I've learned from previous occurrences involving Blaze and I, that getting my hopes up tends to leave me with nothing but disappointment, so it's best I just let things be. I should stop hoping and wishing and just let him find himself and his feelings on his own.

"Harmony Skye?"

The sound of my name makes me tear my gaze away from Blaze, who by the way, had noticed me staring at him like that creepy neighbor who keeps looking at him from her porch. But the difference is, my stare was obviously of a smitten adolescent who seemed as if she was fantasizing deeply. That's probably what he was thinking, judging by how his brow had risen and the big question mark on his forehead.

"Yes, I am Harmony Skye." I stand to my feet, and the doctor with wavy black hair and a bright smile extends his hand toward me. He looks to be in his mid-twenties, based on a wild guess. "Dr. Francis, I will be tending to you."

"To hell, you're not." A voice comes from beside me before we can even connect hands. I look to see Blaze staring askance at Dr. Francis while shoving his hands in his pockets.

The man cocks his head to the side and offers a professionally toothy smile. "Excuse me?"

"I said to hell you're not." Blaze repeats as if his intrusion wasn't anything abnormal and out of context.

The man laughs. "And you might be?"

"It doesn't matter who I am; you won't have your eyes between her legs."

I gasp, and my cheeks heat in embarrassment. Why is Blaze making this so much more humiliating and difficult for me?

"You see, I can never understand why young men like you become gynecologists," he continues, and I just want to hide. "Is it because you love the profession, or you love to see between the legs of females? Both reasons are still pretty awful because if you love the profession then you love to see vaginas. So what does that make you then?"

The man is smiling while crossing his arms and looking at Blaze.

"Don't know? Well, let me say it, that makes you a per—"

"Um, Dr. Francis," I quickly cut in before Blaze could finish his rude remark. "I am so truly sorry...about his behavior."

The man laughs and gives me a wave of dismissal. "Nah, it's okay. I can see that your boyfriend really loves you."

My cheeks are red as I glance at Blaze, whose icy stare is unwavering, obviously not the least bit phased by the man's statement. Is that confirmation that he does in fact, love me?

Ugh! I'm doing it again; I am getting ahead of myself once again.

"Just give me a minute; I will check to see if Dr. Kar has a patient right now. If not, I will let her tend to you instead." The man smiles. "I am sure your boyfriend would prefer someone of your gender?"

I purse my lips, my face pink from the embarrassment, and the doctor chuckles softly before walking back to where he came from.

I look at Blaze, whose eyes are watching the man as he disappears behind a door.

"That was such an inappropriate behavior, Blaze..."

"If he didn't have that look of lust in his eyes, then I wouldn't have said anything."

"Look of lust?"

He frowns. "It's a 'man' thing. I could see it in his eyes when he saw you, he admires you, and he was probably already imagining what you would look like without clothes."

"Really?" I make a face. "That's...disturbing."

"Hi, dear. Are you Harmony Skye?" A pretty black-haired female comes on the scene. Her features are delicate, and she seems to be around the same age as Dr. Francis or perhaps a bit older.

I smile politely. "Yeah, Harmony Skye here."

"I am Dr. Kar. Dr. Francis said I should tend to you in his stead."

"Okay."

"Come with me." Her eyes drift to Blaze, who is about to return to the seat section. "If you're with her, you can come along too."

Thank God, knowing he's nearby will make the experience less nerve-wracking. We follow the lady to a room at the back.

••

"Okay, inspection is finished." Dr. Kar announces while pulling the green gown they gave me back down.

Blaze is sitting inside the very room, but the curtain is drawn so he is unable to see what is happening but I know he is probably hearing us pretty clearly.

"Okay, I see no sign of penetration. Your hymen is still intact; it shows no sign of stretching or tear, which would have meant an attempt at sexual assault or attempt at intercourse," she says while jotting something down on her notepad.

"Um..." I sit upright. "Does that mean I am still a virgin then?"

"Well yes, although the virginity test isn't a hundred percent accurate all the time. The usefulness of this criteria has been questioned by medical authorities because some females weren't born with a hymen as well as there can be several other factors that could tear or break a hymen such as being involved in sports, like horse riding or even gymnastics, a simple thing as riding a bicycle can also damage your hymen. But with you, I can see your hymen still intact, and I see no sign of a tear or stretching. The level of laxity is normal."

I nod. "Okay, thank you."

"No problem. I always tell my patients that if there should ever be a case where you feel you may have been sexually assaulted, you should get to a doctor to get checked up right away, alright?"

I smile. "Okay."

"Great." She breathes as she begins to pack her tools up. "Your boyfriend must be waiting sick; let's wrap up."

I chuckle softly, and she looks at me with a grin. "What's so funny? He isn't?"

My shoulders raise in a shy shrug. "I don't know..."

"Well, I can tell he likes you," she whispers, bearing in mind that he's also in the room. "Why else would a boy sit in a gynecologist-center staring at charts about female genital and health for hours? And considering that you're still a virgin...maybe he isn't after sex."

I smile but avert my gaze to my palms to avoid eye contact because right now, my eyes are a dead give away of my undying love for Blaze Xander.

I put my summer dress back on, and we pack up to head out. Blaze is sitting relaxed on one of the chairs when we pull the curtain away, and Dr. Kar gives me a knowing smile before walking ahead.

She's getting my hopes up. Little does she know that Blaze hates me right now because of my deception, although his actions tend to display the complete opposite.

••

"Thanks for squeezing me a spot," I tell the lady at the front desk while Blaze and I get ready to head out of the office.

She beams. "It was a pleasure, Skye."

She's different than those unwelcoming receptionists you'd find at most business places. It seems she likes her job and not just doing it to fulfill her daily responsibilities.

My lips pull back in a grateful smile, and Blaze and I turn away to head through the door when someone calls out to us.

"Harmony? Hold on, dear."

I whirl around to see Dr. Kar speedily approaching us.

"Did I leave something behind?"

"Oh, no, dear. We have these on giveaways to teens and adolescents who stop by." She hands me a small box, and I tilt my head to the side, unsure of what it is.

"Uh, what is..."

"They're condoms, sweetheart."

My cheeks fire up, and Blaze looks away awkwardly.

Why is this lady—

"Thank you." I force a smile, although I am positive that I won't need this anytime soon.

"Okay, safe travel." She smiles then shoots me a subtle wink before walking away.