Sitting on a chair placed nearby Monica's bed, Andrew glanced at his pocket watch, in one of the rare moments he would take his eyes away from the little angel. The hospital bedroom was silent and gloomy and it was amazing how time seemed to have two different dimensions: when he was in Monica's company, hours turned into minutes and minutes into brief seconds of joy. But now that his dearest friend was so quiet and lost in the unconsciousness of her human brain, waiting was like a heavy burden he had vowed to carry until the moment she opened her eyes for him again.
Andrew's silent ordeal was gently interrupted by Karen, with a slight knock on the door. As the nurse entered the bedroom, he could see that there was someone in the anteroom. She could be six or seven years old and wore a lilac dress and white cardigan and sandals, and her bright auburn hair cascaded over her shoulders up to her waist. In her hands, she carried a small bouquet of tiny white verbenas and a brown teddy bear. Karen was careful enough not to let her enter and beaconed Andrew to come up to the hall outside of Monica's bedroom.
At first, he was reluctant to leave Monica's side but in a blink of an eye another presence was felt inside the room: quietly, Tess appeared in angelic form and nodded her head slowly, letting him know that she would watch over their dear friend. More relieved, the blond angel bent down and lay a gentle kiss against Monica's temple and left the room under Tess' attentive eyes.
"Andrew, there is someone here who would really like to see 'Miss Monica'," Karen explained as he became face to face with the little girl, whose mother was standing quietly in a corner with tears in her eyes. Andrew managed a gentle smile and knelt before the child so that they could be at the same level.
"This is Sarah." The nurse explained, and then pointed at the teddy bear, "And this is her friend, Charlie. Annie, this is Andrew, Monica's friend."
"Hello, Annie. It's very nice to meet you and Charlie!" The blond angel shook hands with her, not missing that under her cardigan sleeve, the little girl had some bandages protecting her burnt skin. There was no doubt: Sarah was the third child Monica had rescued from the fire.
"Hi, Mr Andrew." She politely greeted him back.
"I take it you and Charlie came here to see Miss Monica."
"Yes, but they didn't let us enter. Miss Karen said it's only for grown up people."
"I'm sorry, sweetie, but it's true. We still need to wait a little so Monica gets stronger. Right now, she needs to rest as much as she can."
She nodded her head with great maturity. "I understand. Are you Miss Monica's boyfriend?"
Andrew chuckled softly at that question. "Monica is my best, dearest friend."
With a soft smile, she nodded again. "There are some things I wanted to give her but she's sleeping now, so Miss Karen and my mom said that it'd be alright to give them to you so you can keep them until Miss Monica wakes up." Saying that, Sarah handed him the flowers.
"Oh, Sarah... That's very sweet of you."
"Can you give them to Miss Monica?"
"Of course I can. And I can guarantee you that Monica will love them very much!"
"I wanted to say thanks for her saving my life and for giving my mom back to me, I guess that'll have to wait a little though..."
As Andrew's expression was one of confusion at those last words, Sarah's mother stepped into the conversation.
"Sarah, sweetheart, why don't you go have that special hot chocolate that you wanted to drink right before we came here?"
"I think your mom had a very good idea!" Karen was quick to say, offering her hand to the little girl. "I'll take you to the cafeteria!"
"Okay." Sarah turned to Andrew before leaving the room and placed the small teddy bear in his hands. "I brought Charlie to make Miss Monica some company, he always makes me feel better when I'm not feeling well."
Smiling, the blond angel gladly accepted the treasured toy. "Thank you, sweetie."
When the little girl left the hall accompanied by Karen, Sarah's mother gave a step forward, aware of the confused look in Andrew's eyes.
"Sarah and I had not seen each other for two long months." She explained. "I travel a lot due to my job as a reporter and since Sarah was a baby her father has also been a mother to her."
"I understand work sometimes demands some sacrifice."
"That's the problem, Andrew. I never saw my constant absence as a sacrifice. To me, travelling around the world was something exciting, brave... something that made me feel special and powerful."
Andrew nodded his head in understanding and on the following second, the ironic and bittersweet smile on Mrs Stevenson's face was replaced by an expression of disappointment and frustration. "What I never realised was the selfish person I've always been. The sacrifice you've just mentioned... it was my husband and my daughter who had to go through it. I'm so ashamed that I first knew about what happened to Sarah through the TV news. When I heard her name and saw that she could've died in a fire I... I felt the worst creature in this world!"
Tears fell from her eyes as she spoke. Andrew placed the teddy bear and the flowers on the coffee table in front of him and touched her shoulder. "Mrs Stevenson, recognising one's mistakes while there's still time to correct them is a virtue and a gift. Sarah is still so young and I'm sure she just wants to love you, no matter what. And I have no doubt that you love her very, very much."
Sarah's mother let out a small sob and nodded her head. "I do. God knows how much! But it was necessary to see a stranger giving up on herself to save my daughter's life for me to realise what I was throwing away. I'll be eternally grateful to Monica for what she did for Sarah and I'll pray every night and day for her to receive the same blessing Sarah received. Your friend, Andrew, was an angel sent by God to save not only my daughter but the whole family."
Pleased to hear that and equally moved, Andrew managed a slight smile. "Coming from Monica, I'm not surprised. Touching people's hearts... this is what she does best.
