The Navigator

Part III

Chapter 4 

It wasn't until I had come home from work the next day that I heard the news.  

I entered the apartment and throwing my bag down on the couch, walked over to the side table where a tank sat full of water. I leaned down and put my eye to the glass, grinning as my goldfish spun in a circle, flapping his fins at me. "Oh, hey buddy, I'm happy to see you too." I straightened and grabbed his food off of the window ledge, leaning over to add a few flakes to the water. "There you go, Bandit. That's my good boy. Were you hungry?"  

I stepped away from the table and strode into the kitchen, grabbing a granola bar off of the counter as I walked by. I was about to go into the bedroom and watch TV, when the flashing light of my phone module stopped me. I had missed messages.  

Crunching on the dry granola bar, I walked over and pressed the speaker button, listening as the first message came on. It was from Angie. "Hi Jax. I was just calling to tell you thanks again for the flour. My cookies turned out great and my sister's wedding reception was really...." I skipped to the message. That one wasn't drastic. I could listen to it later.  

The next message was from Chance inviting me to attend a party at his apartment that evening. I couldn't help but laugh as he said, "Come on Jax! You know you want to. There will be lots of hot babes.....and guys....if that sparks your interest more. Just come ok? Ok, bye."  

I reached the third message and was surprised to hear my mother's voice come over the phone. It sounded like she had been crying. "Hi sweetie, it's your mom. I just wanted to call and tell you that Janie was put in the hospital again last night. They think the cancer will finally win this time. Your father and I were just wondering if you could come down and see her before....well, you know.......anyway, let us know. We love you." 

The phone beeped, signaling the end of the messages, but I barely heard. I was still thinking about my mom's message. Janie? In the hospital again? And she was going to die this time, the doctor's were pretty sure. I ran a hand through my dark hair and blew out a long breath. Janie, my little sister, was dying. It wasn't like all of the other times when I didn't know the person who died, at least not on a personal level. This was my sister, and if I went to see her, I wouldn't be in control like I always was in those kinds of situations. I wouldn't get to see her soul. Another Navigator would come and take her and I would be on the mourning side, not knowing where she was or if she made it up there safely.  

I tried to calm myself down and think clearly. It would hurt. That was for sure. I would have to watch my little sister die, but I couldn't just not go. They were my family and I owed them everything. I would have to go...regardless of the pain of seeing what dying was like from the other perspective. 

Chapter 5 

I pulled up at the hospital in Pennsylvania and turned off my car, but stayed sitting behind the wheel for a moment. I took a few deep breaths to calm myself before I went in and then reached into the backseat to grab the present I had bought and wrapped for Janie.  

After I had entered the hospital doors, I headed straight for the service desk. The girl behind it looked me up and down on approach and seemed to see something she liked because she batted her eyelashes and asked, "Can I help ya, doll?"  

I ignored her attempt at flirting and asked quickly, "Do you know what room Janie Davis is in? It would be in Oncology."  

The nurse let out an irritated sigh at my lack of flirting and began to flip through the room number charts. Finally locating it, she tapped her long red fingernail on the number and said, "Here it is. Janie Davis. Room 223, 4th Floor."  

"Thank you." I hurried away from the service desk and the flirty receptionist and quickly took the elevator to the 4th floor. I stepped out of the elevator and immediately, the smell of antiseptic and narcotics nearly overwhelmed my nostrils. Used to working in a hospital, I pushed the smells aside and strode down the hallway toward room 223. Upon reaching the room, I looked through the small glass window in the door and saw my mother and father talking quietly in the corner of the room. Janie was lying on the bed, oxygen and feeding and IV tubes curling all around her, watching a TV program.  

I tried to get my parent's attention through the window. I wanted to talk to them first before I saw Janie. I finally succeeded in getting my dad's attention and he bumped my mom before they both exited the room and entered the hallway. Instantly, my mom was hugging me and kissing me and saying things like, "I can't believe you came all the way out here!" and "Your sister will be so excited to see you!"  

My dad watched for a moment and then finally pulled my mom away from me. "Arlene, give the kid some air to breathe."  

I grinned. "Hey, pop." He stepped toward me and gave me a brief hug before stepping back again, allowing my mom to have the floor.  

My mother, who looked much older than I remembered, commented on my gift and then said quietly, "I guess you would like to know everything about Janie." At my nod, she swallowed a lump in her throat and said, "Well, the tumor came back in her brain and is now spreading to her other organs. She's on chemo right now, but it's not helping. They think she has two months left at the most." My mother began to cry and my father moved to put his arm around her.  

I stiffened my resolve and said, "Well, I guess I'll go in and see her now." I entered the room and my eyes immediately went to Janie on the bed. She was so small and frail that I thought she might break.  

When she caught sight of me, she managed to say excitedly, albeit a bit hoarsely, "Jax! You came!"  

I leaned over the bed and took her in my arms, holding her to me, hoping she wouldn't fall apart in my arms. Her once beautiful dark hair was gone, only growing in a few wisps on her head. Her skin was a sickly sallow color and there were dark circles under her sunken eyes. But her smile. Oh, her smile. Her smile was still as bright as I remembered it. It was my favorite part of her.  

I pulled a chair up beside the bed and handed Janie the gift I had brought. She smiled and took it with trembling hands. "For me?" At my nod, she began to carefully pull the wrapping paper away from the cardboard box beneath. When she had fully exposed the box, she lifted the flaps and, upon seeing what was inside, gave a little gasp of delight. "I love it, Jax! It's beautiful!" She reached into the box and pulled out the stuffed platypus, cuddling it to her. "Oh, he's so cute! I'm going to name him Perry after the Platypus in Phineas and Ferb!" 

I was delighted she liked it so much. It had taken me a couple of days to find because platypuses weren't a common children's toy. But, leave it to Janie to be unique. "Look at the rest of the stuff." I urged her gently as I pushed the box back toward her across the bed.  

She eagerly dug into the box and pulled out two framed photographs. In one, Bandit, my goldfish, was smiling through the glass of his fishbowl and in the other, my personal favorite, Janie and I were sitting on the couch at my apartment, grinning cheesily up at the camera.  

Janie took the photos and carefully set them up on her bedside table, right in front of the vases of flowers and envelopes of cards. She stared at them for a moment and then grinned at me. "Oh, I love them. Thank you so much Jax!" I leaned over so that she could throw her arms around my neck and crushed her to me.  

Life...well, I guess death....was so unfair. I could take people out of this world, but why couldn't I keep them in it?