Tricking the GP

This is a chapter from Out of Frames. His Patient — a novel I wrote under the pen name Atlas Violet. It was originally conceived as a trilogy; the first book is finished and waiting to find its readers. Platforms like Bookmoondo are where I see it next.

Meet Oksana: a Russian university student in her early twenties. She's the kind of girl who always does her homework — but she'd do anything to get out of PE class.

Meet Alexander Ivanovich: a doctor who doesn't just listen to what you say — he reads what your body doesn't. His practice blends Western precision with Eastern wisdom and naturopathic depth. After years in China, he brought his methods back to Russia — methods that challenge the very boundary between therapy and transgression.

Spring at a Russian university. Lectures, classrooms, notebooks. Everything is perfectly ordinary. Today, I plan to skip my mandatory PE class. All I have to do is tell the campus nurse I have stomach cramps and get a medical excuse.

Instead of the nurse, I'm greeted by the university's new physician. He smells of sandalwood and is far too handsome to work in a campus clinic. He introduces himself as Alexander Ivanovich—using the traditional Russian first name and patronymic that immediately establish authority, professionalism, and emotional distance.

The doctor listens carefully to my complaints before calmly informing me that a superficial examination won't be enough. He believes in treating the cause, not masking the symptoms. His methods are far more direct than I ever expected, and refusing them would expose the lie behind my visit.