Brick by Brick

Part Twenty Three

Chapter Twenty Three

Eleanor tottered rather than walked, and Joel smiled at her antics. The small park on the headland just outside the village was the perfect location to play. And Eleanor played like the little child that she was. It was wonderful to watch and Joel rued the fact that already she was almost a year old and he'd not spent much time with her. He did everything he could to not think about Sammy, he had no idea what she was going through at the hospital, but he vowed to be happy for her daughter until they picked Sammy up.

In reality it was far harder than he imagined, Sammy was puffy eyed, her tears glassed her eyes, but she refused to let them fall in front of Eleanor who giggled and squealed the moment she appeared.

"Hi baby girl!" She smiled leaning from the passenger seat of his car to grin at Eleanor sat in the back seat. "You been good for Aunty Joel?"

He nudged her in the ribs, "aunty? You cheeky..." He too turned to Eleanor, "shall I tickle your mother?"

Eleanor smiled so he dug his fingers under her ribs and drove to a fit of squeals, just what he hoped she needed. When she was panting and begging him to stop for fear of having an accident in the front seat of his BMW, he stopped and they both slumped back in their seats, his breathing as erratic as hers.

After a few seconds she turned to him, "thanks Joel, for everything. That was just what I needed."

He grinned, "what happened? How's your mother?"

She told him that her mother had been inconsolable, and it had taken Sammy a long time to leave the ward after that. She'd be out of theatre by mid afternoon and she could visit later.

"I'll drive you back here later, then cook us some dinner." When her eyes widened in surprise and maybe a little mockery he laughed, "I have been practicing, and I plan to wow you later."

"I should stay at the hospital..."

He shook his head, "quite the opposite, you NEED to come home. Your main role is as a mother. And I'll hang around, for as long as you need me, ok?"

The tears were there again, peaking out of her eyelids, "you are amazing Joel, I'll never thank you enough."

He laughed, deliberately trying to lighten the mood, "let's leave that sentiment until after you've tasted my dinner, ok?"

She gave a watery smile, "deal."

They'd stopped at the cliff top cafe on the way back and had an ice-cream disregarding the cold temperatures and hard wind. Back home Eleanor slept, for hours, so Sammy and Joel sat and watched the football scores appear on TV, waiting for the call from the hospital to tell her that Monica was back from theatre and recovering. At four, later than planned, she finally got the call.

Eleanor was playing on the floor, Joel was dozing on the sofa, but then he hadn't had much sleep the previous night either.

"Take my car." He tossed her the keys, "I'll give this lady some tea, and then you'll be home for our dinner. Yes?"

She nodded silently looking between him and Eleanor a few times before disappearing out into the cold afternoon.

It didn't take long for her mother to exhaust every ounce of her sympathy, she wasn't great with a head cold, post surgery she was a nightmare. After consultation with the surgeon, Monica had decided she wanted reconstruction, so she was complaining about pain, the unevenness of her bandages, and of course the food. Her anger and frustration at her mother helped her to lose anxiety and concern. When she left the hospital a couple of hours later, Sammy felt so much better. There was a long way to go, radiotherapy, chemotherapy...the treatments stretched out into the future, but for now she was past stage one. Monday would bring meetings, plans, and the results of the biopsies on her tumour, but for Saturday night, Sammy could head home a little relieved.