“Fortunately, the prerequisites involve many of the courses you’ve taken for physical education. There will be a few classes such as statistics, psychology, and physics you’ll have to dive into right away.” He sat back in his chair. “That’s going to make your senior year challenging. Do you think you can do it?”
I had barely taken a breath since he’d started talking. Dr. Merkofsky. Holy flaming shit. “How long does it take? The, uh, what did you call it?”
“DPT. It depends. The course work is rigorous and, of course, there’s clinical experience with patients. Generally, three years.”
That time, I swallowed so hard he must have heard it.
He leaned forward and folded his hands on his desk. “I’ll be honest. While your grades could certainly be higher, a B average is adequate for applying to the doctoral program. Higher than I often see in students trying to juggle athletics, especially football, with their coursework. So your grades won’t be prohibitive.” He smiled.
Funny. No one had ever told me they were good. “A friend taught me some new ways to study that are helping me. I bet I can get my grades up even more.”
“Can you afford the time to get the degree?”
I licked my lips. “I honestly don’t know, sir. I have enough money to get my bachelors, but I never figured on another three years. If I work really hard in the summer, I can save some.”
“And there are student loans.”
I nodded. I’d never wanted to apply for loans. My dad had hammered into me that you never borrow.
“So, Bubba, shall I intervene to be certain you get the classes required next semester? Do you want to work toward a doctor of physical therapy?”
I inhaled, pictured Sean in my mind telling me I could do it, and said, “Yes. I’ll take those classes.”
He beamed and pressed his palms together. “Good for you, young man. I’m proud of you.”
I just stared at him. I could count the number of times on one hand someone said that to me in my life.
I sat at the table and gazed at the front door of the restaurant, waiting to see Sean walk in. I’d been sitting on my news, waiting to hear from Dr. O’Henry, for three days through workouts at the gym and study nights at the frat house, and I was ready to bust a vocal cord.
The bell jangled, and I grinned. Sean walked in, looking anxious, so maybe he’d guessed something was up. He was pretty perceptive. Plus, we didn’t go to restaurants every night.
His face lit up when he saw me, which made my chest feel warm. He peeled off his big coat and hung it on the rack near the front door. He’d worn his pink sweater that he knew I loved. Threading through tables, he got to the booth I’d reserved. Luigi’s was popular since it served really good Italian food at not very high prices.
I slid out of my side and gave him a hug and a quick kiss. “Hi.” I didn’t even bother to look to see if people were staring. They always were. I finally figured out it wasn’t so much because we were two guys, but that I was so much bigger than Sean. We were a surprising couple.
He took the seat opposite me, and I didn’t sit beside him since this was a better position for talking.
I smiled. “Hope you’re hungry.”
“Starved. But why are we spending money on Luigi’s even though I’m glad we are?”
“I’ve got some news for you.” I wanted to giggle.
“I’ve got news too. What’s yours?”
The waiter arrived with a basket of bread, a plate of olives and veggies, and carafes of olive oil and vinegar. “Hey, Bubba, want to start with salads tonight?” Luigi, the owner, was always nice to me. He liked that I recommended his place to everyone I knew.
“Yes please, Luigi. You want salad, don’t you, Sean?”
He nodded. “With that excellent dressing.”
When Luigi walked away, Sean said, “Come on, tell me.”
I held in my smile. “I’m going to be taking statistics for psychology with linear regression next semester.”
He cocked his head. “Uh, okay. Was that really hard to get into?”
“I’m not sure. My adviser, Dr. O’Henry, got me in.” I popped an olive in my mouth and chewed, then said, “Along with physics and abnormal psychology.” My laugh bubbled in my chest.
He was starting to smile, real slow-like. “I see. So, these weren’t the courses you were originally registered for?” He asked it like we were