The inhospitable air of the sterile waiting room was all the more reason for her to direct her attention towards the dependable ticking of the clock hung reliably against the eggshell walls. 9:07. Usually by now, Ava would have greeted her dearest friend with a good morning text as she did at precisely 9:00 a.m each morning when she knew Evelynn would be just awakening for work. Instead, the rubber soles of her least favourite sneakers squeaked upon the speckled tiles of the doctors office. Small sniffles from juveniles bounced around the room, unknowingly triggering Ava to yearn for the sound of Evelynn’s mellifluous laugh. A tall honey-haired nurse in cyan scrubs appeared from behind the narrow door frame. Her small hands clutched a clipboard that she peered down at before projecting her voice through the room.

“Elizabeth Miller?” She scanned the vicinity, waiting for one of the few people in attendance to stand up in response. A small elderly woman rose slowly from her seat, adjusted her wispy strands of silver hair beneath a floppy sunhat, and shot a sugary smile towards the woman. She was quite small yet radiated an energy that could be felt weaving through the room, reminding Ava of Evelynn. The thought of her staunch best friend sporting gray hair and a periwinkle coat brought a smile to Ava’s face that she wasn’t aware was even there. Evelynn alway seemed to have that effect on her.
Ava glanced back at the clock anxiously, her bouncing knee taking on a vitality of its own as she waited for the tall woman to reappear. The nurse returned twice more, only to call for names that Ava was convinced couldn’t be real, subconsciously assuming the appointment was meant to waste her time. A numbness spread throughout the confines of her steadily rising chest. At this rate, Ava worried the futile appointment would interfere with the rigid routine that she followed six of the seven week days. By 10:45 every morning, Ava vowed to appear at Evelynn’s workplace with her prefered cup of coffee and enough conversational topics to keep the working girl busy for the slow hours of store’s early opening. Despite the inconvenience of its location being nearly twenty minutes in the opposite direction of her apartment, Ava knew the double shot of espresso from the outmoded cafe was enough to make Evelynn’s mornings. It was one of the many ways Ava attempted to repay her for the sisterly affection she’d gifted her with over the last two years. Yet in Ava’s mind, there was no deed imposing enough to properly thank Evelynn for her acts of kindness. Gifts played no match to the commitment imposed by her.
The honey-haired woman appeared again shortly, the clipboard absent from her hands as if she had already been prepared for the next client in line.
“Avalon Vance?” The nurse’s round eyes immediately fell to Ava despite having anyway of knowing which of the several patients in the room she could have been.
Ava’s face flushed crimson as she yanked her bag from the floor, grumbled to herself, and pushed away from the homely chair she had grown quite comfortable in.
Ava gritted her teeth against the growing enmity she was forging for the nurse; she had a hard time allowing even her beloved Evelynn to refer to her by the name Avalon. When close enough, the nurse placed a gentle hand on the vexed girl’s shoulder as she lead them down a narrow hall.
“Hello Ava! How are you feeling this morning?” the loquacious woman chirped over-excitedly.
    Her ears perked at the sound of her prefered titled, a numb curiosity presenting itself towards the back of her mind. How could she have known I go by Ava?
     Despite the uncanniness of the moment, Ava dismissed it as if the nurse had simply read up on her file. After all, it had been almost a year since Ava had returned to the small health center only a few minutes from her intercity Atlanta apartment. Quickly realizing she had yet to respond, Ava pushed her interests to the side before turning slightly towards the woman.
“I’m doing well, thank you.” She tucked a strand of ebony behind her ear before directing her attention back to the speckled tiles beneath her feet. Her eyes wandered towards the beige floorboards where they remained for the lengthy stroll down the hall. They arrived promptly to an oak door wearing a stainless steel name plate labeled “Dr. Rossi” with a handle to match. The nurse turned it slightly before allowing the hefty door to swing open on its own.
“Please take a seat on the table and take off your shoes. The doctor will be in shortly.”
Ava stepped into the enclosed room, taking in the sterile scent that pervaded and plethora of informational pamphlets mounted in plastic cases. The door sealed shut behind her as she began to slip off her worn out sneakers and kick them gently to the side. Her feet felt cold on the tiles despite their wool protection. Ava plopped herself onto the table with a thud, setting her bag behind her as she allowed her feet to dangle freely. The paper cover crinkled beneath her movement as she tapped her freshly applied acrylics against the smooth leather exterior. Interested eyes wandered around the room, admiring the plaques and certificates hung proudly on the walls. She imagined Evelynn’s name on one of them, her impressive cursive signature painted professionally on the bottom. Medical school was a dream come true for Evelynn, and Ava knew how much the idea of owning her own office thrilled her. Ava wanted to do everything possible to help her achieve this goal, no matter what it required of her.
A soft knock brought Ava from her thoughts causing her to subconsciously straighten in posture. A tall man in his mid fifties entered the room, engaged eye contact with the vaguely familiar girl, and pressed the door closed behind him. His eyes were a sharp steel shade holding a sense of experience and wisdom. He took a few steps before stopping at the counter to drop off a freshly opened box of what appeared to be sunscreen samples.
“You’d be surprised how often these things go missing,” the doctor stated, aware of Ava’s curiosity. She simply smiled, her gaze remaining fixed on the violet accented box. The doctor began on a spiel filled with standard health talk and what to expect from her visit; she dismissed this as procedure taken when a patient neglects to schedule their regular appointments. In her defense, the colourless walls lacked comfort; something Ava required a lot of.
Despite his loud voice echoing through the room, her attention managed to stay solely on the small box, imagining its smooth exterior beneath her callused fingertips. An image of Evelynn painted her eyelids, a smile plastered on her round face as she clutched the box of samples Ava had brought her. She could practically hear her best friend’s appreciation ringing in her ears.
Ava’s eyes shot up after hearing her name repeated by the older gentleman in closer vicinity than expected.
“What? I’m sorry I got distracted,” Ava mumbled, embarrassed by her temporary lapse of reality. The doctor simply smiled as he jotted something down on a notepad located on the counter next to him.
“I was asking about your Heterochromia. Have you been having any issues with your eyesight lately?” He raised an eyebrow, awaiting a reply from the antsy girl.
She shook her head quickly, knowing the differentiating colour of her eyes had nothing to do with her diminishing 20/20 vision. Ava couldn’t help but notice the doctor didn’t move to jot this information down. Rather, he held a deep stare towards Ava that made her squirm in her seat. After a few prolonged seconds, he broke eye contact and turned towards an outdated computer on the counter. Shortly after, he returned to his speech on necessary shots she had yet to get. Unable to help herself, Ava allowed her eyes to wander again towards the small box resting stationary on the counter. Fresh thoughts of Evelynn clouded her mind as her hands trembled slightly against her jean clad thighs. She wanted those samples. She wanted to make Evelynn happy; to repay her for all she had done for the difficult girl. She had always seemed to like the other objects Ava sporadically left in her mailbox. Nail polish, magazines, keychains: all things that Ava managed to shove into her bag with the intention of regifting to Evelynn. She had always seemed so grateful for them. Why would this time be any different?
A metallic taste tainted her mouth bringing her back to the moment as she released the unrelenting pressure held against her tongue. She was just in time to catch herself as the doctor spun slowly in his chair to face her. He gave her another one of his famous smiles before standing with help from the counter.
“We need to take a quick look at your medical records. I’ll be back in shortly.”
Ava nodded curtly as the doctor shuffled out of the room with the notepad in his hands.
The maddening silence forced Ava to center her attention on the impulsive thoughts swirling violently throughout her aching head. Every fiber of her body screamed for her to reach for the small box, to do what she knew she needed to; to do it for Evelynn. Yet her feet felt numb hanging off the edge of the table, her body remaining frozen. The compulsive feeling burning in the back of her throat mixed with flashing images of Evelynn gave Ava every reason to stand up and take the box. Unsteady knees nearly buckled as she stepped off of the elevated table and back onto the cold tile. She took silent yet calculated steps towards the counter until she was close enough to place her hands on it. Ava rested her palm against the frigid surface before sliding it towards the box only a few inches away. Her fingers gripped the cardboard container before she began to lift it. Once in her grasp, she took a deeper look at the cheap packaging. It brought a smile to her face as she heard Evelynn’s encouraging words echo throughout her mind. Heavy footsteps could be heard approaching the office as adrenaline shot through her tense body. She fumbled with the box, attempting to pour its copious contents into her crowded purse before the doctor could catch her in the act. The door handle twisted slowly as she quickly shoved her bag and the empty box on the floor beneath the table.
The doctor returned, but this time lacking the smile he wore merely minutes before.
“Did a nurse come in and take those?” The man questioned, motioning his hand towards the empty counter space with the noticeably missing box.
Apprehension rose from her throat, her words being released at a hurried pace.
“I’m not sure, I wasn’t really paying attention.” She averted her gaze from the counter. “You’d be surprised how often those things go missing,” Ava commented, an uncomfortable chuckle leaving her swollen throat as she quoted the older man.
“Well, everything seems fine on your file. We should be able to get you out of here in a few minutes.” He spoke slowly, his back facing her in an off-putting manner.
Ava felt as if an incredible weight had been lifted from her chest with the doctor failing to notice the absence of sunscreen samples. She anticipated Evelynn’s excited face as she showed up to her work with the famous coffee and the box to offer. Peeking up at the clock, Ava noticed it was already almost 10:45. She needed to get out of the office and head towards the small coffee shop. Ava couldn’t risk being late.
The doctor opened the door for the two of them to exit as Ava leaned down to slip on the rugged sneakers--leaving them untied--and retrieved her bag. With the adrenaline and accomplishment fogging her thoughts, she seemed to forget about the stolen objects scattered messily throughout her bag. She miscalculated her grip on its flimsy handle, causing it to tumble from her grasp and display its contents on the polished pearl floors. Multiple packets of the samples were scatter across the floor along with other random items she had yet to clean out from the bag. Ketchup packets, pocket hand sanitizers, a deck of cards consisting of only Evelynn’s favourite numbers: all things Ava was collecting to give to her when she arrived with coffee. Ava’s heart fell to her stomach, a surge of nausea and embarrassment nearly suffocating her as she dropped to the floor to pick everything up. The doctor remained still, clearly examining the scene that just played itself out in front of him.
“I-I can explain!” Ava stuttered, talking louder than necessary due to her buzzing nerves. She began to shovel everything back into her bag before securing it to her hip and pushing herself up with the same unsteady knees as earlier. The doctor’s eyes stayed locked on her anxious ones. He was silent, causing the panic in Ava to boil over as tears formed in the back of her eyelids.
“No Avalon, let me explain.” The doctor stood stationary in the doorway, accepting the confused glare Ava had delivered. “You see, Miss Vance, I knew you were going to take those samples if I left them out. Your compulsive behavior drove you to taking them; the need to steal becoming obsessive. It was as if you couldn’t help it.”
    “I don’t know what-” She was cut off by the man's overbearing voice.
“My staff and I watched your behavior from the minute you walked in. Your impatience, quickness to anger, inability to focus, obsessiveness towards others. These are all key factors to your real issue Ava.”
Blood rushed to her cheeks as she took a step back from the man, her head whirling with the sudden reveal of so much information.
“Sir, all due respect but I-” He cut her off for the second time that cold morning.
“You have Kleptomania Miss. Vance,” he stated, his volume shrinking as he noticed the silence surrounding the office.
Her mouth went dry as she peered past the man, noticing a group of various nurses peaking into the room at her. They all wore looks of concern and severity like masquerade masks on their hollow faces, although Ava assumed that was part of the act too.
“No,” she breathed out as she gripped onto the bed behind her. “No, I need to leave now. I need to see Evelynn. She needs her coffee,” Ava rushed to speak the words, hoping she could get them out before possibly fainting. “She needs me.” The man moved towards her in attempt to console her, which only caused her to flinch from his advances.
“Avalon.” The doctor’s tone seemed sincere, as if the worst of her news was yet to come. “Evelynn was the one who called you in.”