Her Purpose

Chapter Twenty

Monday morning rolled around far too quickly. The weekend's excitement felt like a distant memory as Dad, Nathan and I trudged into the hospital for my chemo session. The familiar smell of disinfectant hit me as we walked through the sliding doors, and I felt my stomach clench.

"You alright, love?" Dad asked, his hand on my shoulder.

I nodded, forcing a smile. "Yeah, just... you know. The usual."

Nathan squeezed my hand. "We're right here with you, Beth."

As we made our way to the oncology ward, I couldn't help but think about Mum. She usually came with me to these appointments, but she had an important meeting at work she couldn't reschedule. I knew she felt guilty about it, but I'd assured her it was fine. And it was, really. But there was something comforting about her presence that I missed.

We checked in at the desk, and the nurse - Rebecca, I think her name was - smiled at us. "Hello, Beth. How are you feeling today?"

"Oh, you know," I said with a shrug. "Ready to get this over with."

She nodded sympathetically. "Well, we'll try to make it as quick and painless as possible. Your usual room is ready whenever you are."

As we walked down the corridor, I heard a familiar voice. "Beth! Beth!"

I turned to see Tommy, the little boy I'd met during my last session. He was sitting in a wheelchair, his mother beside him. His eyes, clouded and unfocused, were turned in my general direction, a big smile on his face.

"Tommy!" I said, feeling a genuine smile spread across my face. "How are you?"

"I'm okay," he said. "Mum says I have to have more tests today. But I told her it's not so bad because I might see you!"

I felt a lump form in my throat. "Well, I'm glad I could make your day a bit better."

Tommy's mum smiled at me gratefully. "He's been talking about you non-stop since your last visit. You really made an impression."

I introduced Tommy and his mum to Dad and Nathan. "This is my dad, and this is my boyfriend, Nathan," I explained to Tommy. "And Dad, Nathan, this is Tommy and his mum, Mrs..."

"Oh, please, call me Linda," Tommy's mum said, shaking hands with Dad and Nathan.

"Nice to meet you," Dad said warmly. "Beth's told us about Tommy. He sounds like quite the brave young man."

Tommy beamed at the compliment. "I'm going to get new eyes soon," he announced proudly. "Then I can see Beth properly!"

I saw Linda's smile falter slightly, and I remembered what she'd told me last time about the difficulty of finding a suitable cornea donor.

"How's the wait for a transplant going?" I asked hesitantly.

"We had a bit of a setback," she explained, her voice tight. "We thought we had a donor, but... it fell through at the last minute."