November
Teddy parked in the parkade across from the Salish complex, she saw the grassy area and the large trees with the swings in them Annie had told her about. Annie had sent Teddy many pictures of her and her friends enjoying rare fall sunshine on the grass or on the tree swings. She saw the two towers labeled 1 and 5 and started to walk towards the one with one over the door.
"Good afternoon, miss how may I help you," greeted the clerk at the desk.
"Hello, I'm checking in the reservation is under Altman," Teddy said.
"Doctor Theodora Altman, mam" the young man confirmed.
"Yes," Teddy confirmed, handing the clerk her passport and credit card.
The young man entered her details into the system and swiped her card, "you're in room 518 on the 5th floor."
"Thank you," replied Teddy, " do you know how to get to the Korner Library?"
"Yes mam, go back out to Agronomy to the road you drove in on and follow it up the hill to Main Mall, turn left onto Main Mall and walk past the Biology and Chemistry buildings, Korner is the library building on your right, from Main Mall it looks a bit like an old castle."
"Thank you very much," said Teddy again.
She went up to her room and put her suitcase and laptop bag down. After spending some time unpacking and putting her things away she curled her hair and touched up her make up. Choosing jeans, a deep blue top with a black sweater and a pair of black boots she made her way out of her room, grabbing her black wool coat and umbrella on her way. As she walked she noticed the beauty of the campus, over the previous weeks Annie had been sending her photos of favourite spots on campus, which Teddy began to recognize as she walked. She recognized the fountain where Main Mall and University Boulevard crossed, Annie had sent her a photo of her with a few friends in gum boots and umbrellas posing in the shallow water of the fountain.
Ahead she thought she recognized Annie's purple umbrella with the white polkadots, she had seen it in many of the recent photos her daughter had sent. Teddy picked up her pace to try and get a closer look, she wasn't to meet her daughter for another half an hour but wanted to take a look around the old library and find a table where Annie had asked her to meet. As she approached the girl with the purple and white umbrella she saw the long straight hair the same colour as her own. Teddy smiled noticing the girl's jeans and black boots, her reddish blonde hair sweeping down the back of her purple jacket. This was Annie, she was sure of it. Something in her just knew watching the girl walk ahead of her, it wasn't her brain it was something deep inside that she had buried for a very long time something very maternal. A feeling she hadn't felt in 19 years. Deciding not to surprise the girl who appeared to have her iPod in her ears as she walked she followed her to the library.
Teddy hung back and watched as the girl she was now 99% certain was her daughter walked through the green space and up the steps to the library. She checked her watch, she wasn't supposed to meet Annie for another 20 minutes. As Teddy walked into the library, she was awed by the beautiful stone building and gleaming hardwood floors. She gave her self a few minutes to explore the building and admire the beautiful collection of art and artifacts displayed around the building. Checking her watch again she noticed that she had 7 minutes to locate her daughter. Teddy stepped into the nearest washroom and took a moment to calm herself. If she was this nervous after 19 years she couldn't begin to imagine how Annie must feel.
At her table Annie was quietly rewriting some notes from her biology class earlier that day. She often took the time after class to add onto her notes or illustrate them with diagrams either in spaces she left or in the margins of her neat coil bound notebooks. Glancing at her iPhone she noticed the time, Teddy would be here in 5 minutes, she knew she would recognize her birth mother. They had skyped a few times in the last couple weeks and had been messaging each other through whats app regularly. Annie took a picture of herself in the library and sent it to Teddy hoping it would help Teddy to find her in the sea of students and tables.
Teddy smiled when she saw the picture Annie had sent, it was her daughter that she had followed to the library. She quietly walked towards where her daughter was sitting, she realized that she was behind Annie and remembered what Leslie had told her the other day in their conversation, Annie hated being approached from behind. Teddy circled around so that she would approach the front of Annie's table.
"Annie," Teddy questioned standing in front of the table.
Annie looked up and beamed, "Teddy!"
"Hi sweetheart, can I have a seat," Teddy asked.
"Of course," Annie replied, closing her notebook.
"What were you working on," asked Teddy.
"I was adding some details to my diagrams of the circulatory system from anatomy," Annie said, "I usually add more details after the lecture and I've reread the textbook sections or looked up things that confused me in class."
"Can I see your notes, maybe I can clarify the confusing sections," Teddy offered.
Annie turned her notebook towards Teddy, "if you want to. It's just second year anatomy, nothing like what you're teaching your residents."
"Let's make sure you have a solid foundation," Teddy said, " if you ask me it's the most important part of the human body."
"Of course you would say that, you're a heart surgeon," Annie laughed, "right now I'm just focusing on doing what i need to to get into medical school."
"Heart surgeon is a simple way to put it little bear, I'm a cardiothoracic surgeon," Teddy corrected gently.
They spent the next hour working through Annie's notes from Anatomy class focusing on the recent sections on the heart and lungs.
"This wasn't how I imagined our first face to face meeting, I wasn't planning on asking you to tutor me," Annie said, "but that was a lot clearer than what my prof said in Anatomy."
"I'm glad it helped, you had a really good start. What I did was take you to where I want a medical student to be, you're a smart girl Annie, you catch on quickly," Teddy praised.
Annie blushed, "thank you. Do you know the couple over at that table, a redheaded man and an asian woman? They keep pointing at us and looking away."
Teddy looked to where Annie was pointing, "that's Owen and Christina. Put your books away, we can go say hello and then why don't we go for a walk you can show me around campus."
Annie quickly put her books back into her bag and stood up, she threw her coat on over her burgundy top, "okay, I'm a little nervous about meeting your friends. I'm just an undergrad student, their big important surgeons."
Teddy put her hand on Annie's shoulder, it was the first time she had touched her daughter. Teddy whispered, "look at me, Owen is my best friend, he knows how proud I am of you, Christina is my student, she's still learning but will never admit it. I'm proud of you, I've always dreamed of showing you off. Let me do it."
Annie took a deep breath then wrapped her arms around Teddy, who hugged her back, pulling Annie in close to her. "And I've always dreamed of doing that."
Teddy laughed, "me two. I only got one hug when you were first born. Come on let's go say hi then I'm voting for a walk around campus, dinner then maybe I can meet your friends."
"Dinner, dance class at 8, then say hi to my friends," Annie suggested.
"How long is your dance class," asked Teddy.
"Eight to nine thirty," Annie replied, "it's just a ballet technique class but I love Mrs C's class, was my teacher out in Langley before she started teaching here. I've worked with her since I was 5."
"Is it okay if I meet you after dance class," Teddy asked.
"If you want to, it's pretty late to meet up, I don't want to keep you up. Most of my roommates will be relaxing by that point," Annie replied, "Sarah won't be back from work until 11 ish"
"Why don't we say hi to Owen and Christina, grab dinner then you can text me after dance and see how you feel. I'm used to very weird hours and napping here and there a few nights a week when I'm on call. I can function on 2 hours of sleep, one late night of ice cream or cup cakes in a dorm won't kill me," Teddy said.
"That sounds good to me. Let's go say hi to them," Annie said.
Teddy lead the way towards where Owen and Christina had been watching them. Annie followed shyly behind Teddy. Teddy was observing her daughter and noticed that the confidence she had displayed when she was they skyped or when the two of them sat together discussing Annie's anatomy homework had disappeared as they approached Teddy's friends.
Owen looked up from his laptop as they approached, he recognized the strong purposeful presence of his best friend, "hi Teddy," he greeted, "you must be Annie."
"Hi," Annie greeted shyly.
"Owen, Christina this is my daughter Annie, she's a student here at UBC," Teddy said.
"What are you studying," asked Christina.
Teddy smiled at her protege, at least Christina was acknowledging that Annie existed.
"I'm doing sciences focusing on Biology and Anatomy," Annie replied, "UBC doesn't offer a specific pre-med program but we have a good medical school here. Only one in the province."
"I did a similar thing to you, I studied biology and chemistry before going to medical school," Owen said, "there's lots of ways to get to medical school."
"What courses are you taking," asked Christina.
"Anatomy, biology, organic chemistry, calculus, english and geomorphology. I like to take one geography course a semester its something i enjoy and i need electives so it works," Annie replied.
Turning to Teddy, Christina said, "you didn't tell me she was driven enough to take six classes."
"I had nothing to do with that," replied Teddy, "she chose to take six this semester plus highland dancing competitively and performing with the school dance team as well as teaching preschool dance and Sunday school. Next semester she seems to think she can manage all that plus another class and volunteering as a research assistant with my friend Dr. Milner."
"I'm guessing no boyfriend then," said Christina.
"I like this guy James in my biology class, he's my lab partner," Annie replied, "but if i'm going to do this in 4 years and get into medical school I need to be focused."
Owen added, "there's no rush. The best residents I've worked with have taken longer paths, gotten to know themselves and found out what matters to them. First isn't always best."
"I have to prove to my dad's side of the family that I can do this. They doubt that I can be a doctor. I want to be either a paediatrician or a surgeon, I haven't decided yet. But they don't think i can do it and my cousins think i'm wasting my time in school. They call me queen of the nerds and that I need to do something more practical and get a job," Annie explained, " my younger brother joined the military and is training as a pilot."
"You could do both and be a paediatric surgeon or you should consider cardio," said Christina, "and it's not a nerd, it's a medical goddess."
Teddy noticed that Annie replaced after that comment and that she was standing up straighter and beginning to look the intimidating military surgeon and the most intense resident she had ever met in the eye.
"She still needs to finish her biology degree and get into medical school," Teddy said, " we can discuss specialties later. She'll find what she loves."
"What type of surgeons are you two," asked Annie.
"I'm a cardiothoracic resident working with Teddy," replied Christina.
"I'm a trauma surgeon," Owen said.
"What does that mean," asked Annie.
"I deal with major injuries like car accidents, gun shots, and run the emergency room," explained Owen.
"So like the doctor Chris saw a couple years ago when he crashed skiing and needed something in his stomach fixed, collapsed his lung and needed pins in his arm," asked Annie.
"I would have done the internal injuries, Teddy or Christina would deal with the lung and it's another specialist who deals with the arm but I'm in charge. I decide who does what and what order we do things to keep the patient alive and with their best chances for a full recovery. What did your brother do that he needed that sort of surgery skiing," replied Owen.
Annie rolled her eyes, " we were on a school ski trip and he decided to show off for Shawn and Ben. We're up at Whistler and doing the Lift Line run under the Harmony Chair which we've done with dad since we were 13. He knew the run but decided to go off the big drop instead of going to the side where it's only 10 feet he took it at nearly 20. He was fully able to land it but some snowboarder was sitting where he needed to make his first turn so he lost his rhythm and fell really hard. And I was the only one of us who was fast enough to go get ski patrol and take them to where Chris fell. We were in grade 11."
Teddy cut off the conversation, " if we don't go eat Annie wont make it to ballet class for 8. But I'll come find you after we eat and we can go over the presentation while she dances."
"It was nice to meet you Annie," said Owen.
Christina nodded, "you like to dance it out two."
"This is a ballet tech class, pointe shoes, leotard, tights, older British woman yelling directions. It was nice to meet you two," Annie replied.
Annie grabbed her bag from where she had dropped it on the floor and did up her purple coat. She led the way out of the library and towards her favourite on campus restaurant.
"Thank you for that little bear," said Teddy, " I'm really proud of you. Owen and Christina can be intimidating. Both get pretty intense. But let's go eat so you can get to ballet."