Strong Read Free

talking a lot?”
    Chase laughs and says, “Yes, you are! But it's okay. You sound like a tour guide. Oh, wait! You are a tour guide,” he nudges me and gives me a little smirk.
    “ Well, I'm not planning to do that forever,” I say, rolling my eyes. “I'm finishing my second year at the community college, and I then I have to decide where to go after that.”
    “ Do you know what you want to study yet?” He asks.
    “ I'm thinking about Occupational Therapy.” I pause and hope for some kind of lead in to ask Chase about his crutches. I decide not to ask just yet because it seems kind of personal to ask why he uses them. I continue, “ My grandmother had a stroke about seven years ago, and I was fascinated by the process she underwent to learn how to cope with her partial paralysis. I'm not sure she would appreciate my use of the word fascinated , but it really inspired me to see her learn how to do many things with one hand. She passed away a few years later, but not before showing everyone how much she could do.”
    “ Oh, gosh, I'm talking a lot again. Sorry,” I finish a bit awkwardly.
    “ It's fine,” he smiles. “Well, the University of Wisconsin has a Master's Program for Occupational Therapy, so you could look into that. I'm at UW right now.”
    “ What year?”
    “ I'm a senior.”
    “ Studying what?”
    “ I want to go into medicine, so once I'm done at Wisconsin, I'll transfer somewhere else. Maybe the University of Michigan medical school. Wisconsin has a medical program, too, but I'd like to move away from my family for a bit. I mean, they're great, but I grew up in Madison and...well, it's a long story.  Anyway, I'm kind of lagging behind in making that decision. I should have already applied to med school and I should be preparing to take the MCAT, but I've had a few delays. After the holidays, I'm planning to get serious about narrowing down my choices.”
    He's going to be a doctor? This guy just keeps getting better and better, I smile to myself. I realize we've been talking for a long time and shift the truck into gear.
    “ Are you finished with classes already? Mine aren't over until the second week of December.” I remark.
    “ I have to go back to Madison for a few finals, but my parents insisted that I join them at the cabin for Thanksgiving. I'll be down there for a few days this week, a few next week, and then I'll be back here until the new year.”
    “ So, you're on Brickstone Road?” I ask.
    “ Yeah, our cabin is all the way at the end.”
    “ And you're staying with your sister, right? Does she live here?” I ask.
    “ No, it's my family's cabin. We bought it about five years ago, but we haven't been up here much. My parents, my sister, her husband and Oma, my grandma, are all staying there. My dad is a professor at the University of Wisconsin. He's a high school football coach, too, so he's really busy, but he's taking a break. It's kind of a leave of absence because our family has been pretty overwhelmed during the past few years. He has a friend at the community college here. He said he might try to visit the campus some time, maybe sit in on a class. He even mentioned the possibility of giving a guest lecture. Anyway, my parents really wanted all of us to take an extended vacation together before I graduate from college.”
    “ Wow, that's a lot of people under one roof!” I observe.
    “ You have no idea,” Chase agrees. “It's a big cabin, but I like to get out as much as I can. Oma isn't with us all the time. She lives in Ontonagon, so she goes home for a few days, and then heads back to spend time with us. It makes more sense than cramming into her tiny house up there.”
    I approach the end of Brickstone Road and see a cabin that clearly doesn't belong to Canyon Crest rentals.  It is about twice the size of a rental; it's quite a bit older and more rustic, but it also looks more lived-in. “This must be your place.”
    “You've got it – home sweet