The boarding process of the flight back to Florida went smoothly and the departure was on time. It wasn’t until they had been in the air for an hour and Madison had finished a glass of white wine that Jack decided the time was right to take another swipe at the piñata.
“How long have you been at Southeastern State?”
“Eight years. The last four as division chief.”
“Do you like it?”
“It’s a great job.”
“That’s pretty high praise. I’m not sure all of my colleagues at Ohio State would say the same about their positions.”
With a dry half smile, she said, “Southeastern State may be different than what you’re used to. Everybody I work with is a caring professional who you can really trust.”
Although he wasn’t going to ask her to elaborate, he still couldn’t figure out whether she was just congenitally unfriendly or if it was him who naturally made her skin crawl. Whatever her reason, it was clear the time to stop tap-dancing around her nasty attitude toward him had arrived.
Clearing his throat, he said, “I’ve never viewed myself as particularly paranoid, and this may sound a little strange to you, but ever since we met, I’ve gotten the feeling you—”
She turned and looked at him, her eyes boring into his. “We didn’t meet yesterday, Jack. We met a long time ago.”
“Uh…really?” he asked, flogging his memory for some clue. He lowered his glass of sparkling water from his lips. Hoping she’d toss a hint in his direction, he went into a four-corner stall. “It’s funny, but now that you mention it, I do have a recollection of us meeting—”
“Save the crap for somebody else, Jack. You don’t have any idea who I am.”
She then laughed at him as if he were trying to pick her up by claiming he was a two-time winner of the Congressional Medal of Honor.
He grinned and then sighed in contrition. “Okay. You’re right. I don’t remember. Where did we meet?”
“At the University of Florida. I was a third year medical student rotating on neurology. You were the chief resident.”
Jack studied Madison’s face again. All at once, he did have a fuzzy recollection of her.
“I may be confusing you with somebody else,” he began cautiously, “but weren’t you using a different…”
“I was using my married name, Madison Casas.”
He raised his finger and pointed hesitantly at her hair. “You looked different…I mean you wore your…”
“Let me save you the embarrassment. I was blond, twenty-five pounds heavier and couldn’t afford contact lenses and posh hair care.”
Jack was now certain he remembered her. But he recalled nothing of a problem between them, leaving him totally perplexed as to why she harbored such resentment for him. As the chief resident, he was much more involved in teaching than most of his fellow residents. Twice during his residency, he had won the Neurology Teaching Award, an accolade presented by the medical students to an outstanding resident teacher.
Seeing no way of putting it gently, he asked, “Did we have some kind of a problem?”
“You mean other than you being the reason I failed the rotation?”
“Wait a sec,” Jack said holding up his hand. “I was only the chief resident. I didn’t have the authority to fail anybody. I didn’t even assign grades. I was asked my opinion of each student’s performance but the chief of neurology was the one who assigned the grades.”
“But you were the one who gave us our final practical oral examination.”
“That’s true, but so what?”
“Are you saying you didn’t discuss the results with the attending physicians in charge?”
“Of course I did, but I never failed anybody on the test.”
She looked at him with dubious eyes. “My written evaluation couldn’t have been clearer. It said I had failed the final practical examination and therefore the entire rotation, which I would be required to repeat. Apart from being one of the most humiliating experiences of my life, I almost didn’t graduate with my class. The failing grade also appeared in big bold letters on my transcript, which didn’t help very much when I applied for OB-GYN residencies. I was so afraid I wouldn’t get one, I wound up applying to thirty programs from Gainesville to San Diego. Needless to say, I didn’t exactly get my first choice.”
In spite of her impassioned speech, Jack was certain he hadn’t been the reason Madison failed her neurology rotation.
“I don’t remember any student having to repeat the clerkship,” he informed her.
“Do you really think I would repeat it with you? I told you. I was so embarrassed I wanted to die. I signed up to repeat my neurology rotation at another hospital. And, not that this would matter to a person such as yourself, but I was going through a horrendous divorce at the time.”
“Why didn’t you speak with me after you found out your grade?”
“What for? To hear the same kind of lame excuses and denials I’m hearing now?”
“You weren’t the only student I had with a personal problem. I think I was always understanding and fair.”
In a droll voice she said, “You’re right, Jack. You were very understanding—right up until the time you fed me to the lions.” She picked up a napkin, crumpled it up and tossed it back on the tray table.
In spite of his best efforts, Jack was not recovering from the free fall.
He could understand Madison’s anger, but they were debating something that had happened a long time ago. And as it turned out, failing her third year neurology clerkship had no negative effect on her career. She had successfully climbed the academic ladder and was now the chief of perinatology at a prestigious medical school.
But Jack was politically seasoned and knew the facts of a disagreement were not always what mattered. Who was right and who was wrong were oftentimes irrelevant. Sometimes, simply apologizing in the blind was the easiest and quickest solution to a problem.
“I’m very sorry for what happened,” he began in a calm tone. “I can honestly say I have no recollection of failing you on the final exam. But if the time you spent on the neurology service caused you any personal difficulties, I apologize.”
She grinned at him. “Does that lame sorrygram really make you feel any better? Because that’s the most oblique apology I’ve ever heard.”
“I can’t make you accept my apology. If you have a problem with me—fine. But I would like to get past it so we can work together.”
“While I appreciate that—”
“Look, it’s going to be tough enough for us to figure what’s going on with these women. Dr. Morales expects us to work together in a productive manner. Certainly what we’re facing with respect to GNS is a lot more important than any misunderstanding that took place between us umpteen years ago. Being at odds with each other will only make things more difficult. I’m asking you to accept my apology so that we can move on.”
Madison’s expression changed slightly. From the loss of conviction on her face, Jack suspected she was giving serious consideration to his proposal.
“You’re right,” she told him with conviction. “Dean Morales has certain expectations. I’m sure I can put my personal feelings aside so that we can work together.”
He nodded politely and said, “I appreciate you being so open-minded and accepting my apology.”
“I didn’t say I accepted your apology. I said I’d work with you. If you’re expecting a group hug and a chorus of ‘Kumbaya’ around the campfire, you’ll be waiting a long time.” Jack sat in guarded silence, taking in Madison’s self-satisfied grin. It was as if she were happily basking in a bit of long-awaited payback. He actually found himself forced to hold back an optimistic smile. If a few verbal lashings at his expense were all Madison needed to square things between them, it would be a small enough price to pay. His ego had endured worse.
With a circumspect expression, he raised his glass in a mock toast.
“Even if you see it as a descent into the depths of hell—I appreciate your willingness to put your feelings aside and agree to work with somebody you truly despise.”
“I never said I despised you. I don’t despise anybody. I just think you’re an asshole—that’s all.”
He took a swallow or two and then set his glass down.
“Did you really just call me an asshole?”
“Absolutely.”
Grinning on the inside, he shook his head. “I can’t remember the last time a colleague called me an asshole.”
“Not to your face, maybe,” Madison said with a laugh. It was a response Jack deemed a minor breakthrough, even if it was only a small breach in her glacial exterior.