?Chapter 0439


    Even though most of the students went home to their families, I decided to stay on campus with my friends for winter break. I still wanted to work on the antidote every chance I had, just in case it would be needed to finish taking down the Crescents. At least, that was what I told myself and everyone else; but I secretly just wanted a reason to be in the infirmary even though there were no sick students on campus to take care of.Belongs to N?velDrama.Org - All rights reserved.


    Being in the infirmary made me feel close to Tiffany. With each passing day, I missed her more and more, and I wished that her body could have been found to at least give her a proper burial. I hated what the Crescents did to her, and no matter what, I would never forgive the people who killed such a sweet and kind woman.


    It wasn''t long before I eventually became the new school doctor, just like Tiffany. The dean still hadn''t found a viable recement for her, and so one afternoon, I finally marched into the dean''s office to give her my speech.


    "I want to be the official school doctor," I said firmly, to which the dean raised her eyebrows and looked at me over her sses.


    *You have school to worry about," the dean said. "It''ll interfere with your studies, won''t it? Besides, you don''t have a medical license yet."


    Even though the dean''s skepticism made my heart sink, I hade here with the intention of standing my ground on the matter, and I did just that. "I''ve been working in Tiffany''s ce for weeks now," I said. "I trained closely with her all semester, up until she..." My voice faltered. I quickly blinked back my imminent tears and cleared my throat. "Anyway, I think I''m more than qualified. You know that I''ll stay here when I graduate, and you won''t need to worry about finding anyone else."


    The dean set down her paperwork and took her reading sses off. She looked at me for a few moments, studying my face, before she finally nodded.


    "Alright," she said. "But only part-time while you''re still in school. If your grades start to slip, I won''t let you do it. Deal?"


    *Deal," I said with a grin.


    The next day, I woke up early to get to the infirmary. Enzo and I were sharing his dorm by now, and we started waking up earlier every morning to head out together. While Enzo would be practicing in the hockey rink, I would be studying in the infirmary. Every so often, we would convene in one ce or the other for a quick few minutes of passion before we parted ways again and went back to our respective talents. While I was studying to get ahead of my work for the uing semester, Enzo was training harder than ever because he wanted to be the official hockey coach; not just the captain until he graduated, but the official coach for the foreseeable future. I could see him making the perfect coach, too. He was firm and didn''t go easy on anyone, but the time spent training the recruits had taught him a valuable lesson in guiding with a gentler hand, and it seemed to follow him in his practice.


    That day, I was sitting at Tiffany''s desk and going through a Chapter in one of the textbooks that I had purchased early for one of my sses for the next semester. I had a cup of coffee beside me, and although my eyelids felt heavy, it was a good sort of sleepiness. Before, I had felt exhausted from too many things going on and from ack of sleep from nightmares or anxiety. But now, I was just exhausted from staying upte and studying, and it was the sort of exhaustion that filled me with happiness.


    Suddenly, however, I heard a crash behind me. I jumped up, knocking my coffee cup over, then swore as I sent coffee spilling all over my desk. Cursing repeatedly under my breath, I quickly grabbed a handful of paper towels and began to sop up the brown liquid before it got everywhere.


    When I finally looked for the source of the crash, I found it.


    It was Tiffany''s picture. It had fallen off of the wall and the ss had shattered all over the floor.


    As I bent down to pick it up, I had to blink away tears. Thankfully, the photo wasn''t damaged and I could rece the frame, but the principle of the photo falling down made my heart ache. It was as if the ss shattering also shattered my heart just a little bit more.


    But as I picked up the broken pieces of ss, I noticed something poking out from behind the backing on the frame. Furrowing my brow, I gently picked up the piece of paper that was sticking out.


    It was a folded up piece of lined paper. My eyes widened as I saw what was written on it.


    *To Nina."


    Forgetting entirely about the broken ss, I slowly unfolded the paper and began to read what was written inside. *Nina... I''m writing this on September 28th, just a couple of weeks after you joined me here in the infirmary. When - or if you ever find this, it might be for a multitude of reasons. Maybe I''m gone, for some reason. Maybe I left Mountainview to finally travel to Paris. Or maybe I got impatient and gave this letter to you, and I''m watching you right now as you read it. Either way, it doesn''t matter. I know that you''re special, Nina. There''s so much that you don''t know yet about the world, but I know that by the time you read this, you will have learned it all. I may not be magical or very special in any particr way, but I can see potential when it''s right in front of me, and you''re full of it. Whatever happens over theing months or years, I just hope that it all works out for you. I hope that you find happiness and peace within yourself. I hope that you gain confidence and pride in yourself. Most of all, I hope you know that I love you, and I think you''re amazing. And whether I''m nowhere to be found, or whether I''m in Paris, or whether I''m sitting right in front of you while you read this, I hope you know that to me, you''re the daughter that I always wished I had. You remind me so much of your mother, and I''m so d that she sent you to me. Love, Tiffany."


    By the time I finished reading, tears were streaming down my cheeks. A sob leaked out of my mouth and filled the silence as I sat on the floor and leaned back against the metal cab behind me.


    "I love you too, Tiffany,." I whispered through my tears.


    In a way, I felt as though she was there, as though she heard me just then. Maybe the picture falling to reveal the letter was pure coincidence, or maybe it was a message from her in the afterlife.


    Either way, as I clutched the letter to my chest and sobbed openly on the floor of the infirmary, I felt Tiffany''s presence more than ever. And I was d that I had met her, too.