Child Of A Bus Driver

Chapter Five- What a horrible day

The alarm had struck 7:00am and it was time to get up, I was feeling much better than yesterday and I was ready to start the day. Getting out of my nice warm bed was the tricky part, but eventually I was up and getting in the shower,where the water was lovely and warm on my cold body. Dried and dressed I made my way downstairs and in to the kitchen, where Jack was making breakfast " this is my kitchen? Right?" Jack was giggling " yes, why?" " because I see my dads friend , who I like to call uncle making me breakfast" " here we go, a nice breakfast to start the day for a very special girl" " thank you Jack" I replied, he smiled. Moments later my dad came down wearing his dressing gown, looking very pale and unwell " you alright dad?" I questioned " I don't feel brilliant" " maybe one of my breakfasts will make you better" jack said, putting the plate in front of him " err.. no jack maybe not" he responded and pushed the plate away " don't you want it?" I asked " no, darling its making me feel queasy" " well if you don't want it I will" " blimey, yesterday we couldn't get you to eat and today we can" jack said in shock " I gotta eat " " indeed" Jack answered. I looked up at my dad, who had his hand on his head and then looked across at jack, who just smiled. I got up from the table and stood by my dad, he looked up and smiled so I gave him a big kiss " a simple kiss will solve everything" I said " off course it will, darling" he replied.

Jack took me to school in Hammond, our Audi Q7 , it was a quite atmosphere, I looked at jack " is Stan going to be alright?" " yes, its just a cold, he will be fine after a couple of days" he replied. There was something not quiet right, I knew there was something more rather then a cold. Jack walked me to school and once inside he bent down " don't worry about your dad, he'll be fine" he said looking straight in to my eyes I gave him a big hug and kiss and went to form. You could say jack and I were close, he's like an uncle and I love him just the way I love my dad. I still wasn't convinced that my dad had just a cold, but jack wouldn't lie or would he?

Lunch time had finished and we were making our way to form but as I walked through the hallway I saw jack standing at the office his face looked tear stained " jack" I asked " what are you doing here?" He looked at me and knelt to the floor " I've got some bad news" he replied with a shake in his voice " what's that?" " this morning when you left for school your dad had a heart attack and was rushed to hospital, where he suffered another, more serious one". That second my heart sank, I couldn't believe what jack had just said, I looked at jack, who remained positive to support me " he's going to be alright? Isn't he?" " he's In the best place, Katie" jack replied. I said nothing but hugged jack " are you able to carry on with school today?" He asked " yes, it will keep my mind of my dad" i replied " see you later" he said giving me a kiss.

I ran up to English and there was so many emotions, but as I did I remembered my bag was downstairs so ran all the way down. Having got my bag and ran back upstairs I was begging to sweat and took a minute in the bathroom opposite to dry my tears and cool down before I made a decision. Standing in front of the dirty mirror my face had come out in red and white blotches and my eyes were bloodshot where I had been crying. I stood outside the door and took a deep breath as I fought back the tears, debating weather to go in or just run away. My mind though made the decision and it looked like I was going in, slowly the loud, creaky door opened and I found myself standing in the doorway " Katie, what the hell has happened to your face? Also are you alright? You look like you've been crying" without realizing my mouth opened " no, I'm not alright" I replied as I made my way to a desk and sat down, at this point every one wanted to know why so I repaired for the worst story telling ever " jack came in to school at break, he looked like he'd been crying, so I walked up to him, asked him what's the matter and why was he here, is reply was that Stan has had a heart attack and has been rushed in to hospital, where he suffered a more serious one." " Katie, you're dad is a strong person, we've all seen it on tv, I'm sure he will come out ok" the teacher reassured " no, no he won't! He's more then just a person you see on tv and there's certainly a lot more to him then you think" I argued " what makes you say that?" The teacher questioned " well...he ..." " there doesn't have to be a reason, I just know, that's all, I know it and so does jack" I proclaimed. There was an awkward tension between the class and me. Everyone wanted to know, however they were to scared to ask. I guess I was too. I wasn't ready for the whole class to know and I don't think my dad was to.

Thudding from the stairs made me curious and so did the knock at the door " come in" the teacher said, looking round from her computer screen, as I looked up from my work I saw jack standing in the doorway, puffing and panting " could I excuse Katie from this class, please" he asked " off course, but what for?" " Katie has to go visit her dad, who has unfortunately had a heart attack" I looked at jack wanting him to say no more, but he didn't get the message " he has to be very careful because he has something wrong with his heart" " jack!" I shouted, across the classroom " haven't you told them?" He questioned " no, I haven't, so shut up" I demanded " its only fair for them to know, besides you have exactly the same thing" he protested...... I paused not knowing what to say. In a way jack was right, however I didn't want anyone to know. " Katie" he exclaimed " ok I'll tell them" " good girl" jack replied " you see, when my dad was 9 months old he suffered from pneumonia, which effected his height and his heart. Getting over a disease like this is very difficult for anyone, however he got over that and he is still here today, but it's left him with an irregular heartbeat, which when he plays sports he comes out in red and white blotches. As do I." I looked up at jack, who was still standing the doorway with his arms folded " and the rest?" He demanded " when I was younger I to suffered with pneumonia, which also left me with the same condition as my dad". There was nothing more to add. I said what he wanted me to say, so I stood up and pushed past him " Katie" he said. I wanted nothing to do with him

Words couldn't describe how angry I was at jack, the more I thought about it the more I wanted to walk to the hospital and the more I thought about that made me want to cry. The only thing making nose was the radio and that occasionally fell silent. There was nothing I wanted to say or do then just sit there looking out the window. Making no eye contact with jack, who sat next to me. Bravely, I said the first sentence " is Stan ok?" Jack looked up round " yes, he's stable enough". Silently and slowly a tear fell down my cheek and as quickly as it fall I wiped if from my face so jack wouldn't see. 

Arriving at the hospital car park I slowly got out the car, wishing jack had ever had excused me from school. Panic filled my mind as I entered the hospital and I gripped jacks hand ever so tight " could you tell me where mr Stanley Butler is, please?" He asked " this way" the nurse pointed out and walked us down the hallway. There was doctors and nurses everywhere, all of which, were rushing around. In private rooms there was people screaming, crying with agony. I hid behind jack, staying as close to him as possible and making sure his hand stayed in contact with mine. Hospitals are busy places, where everyone is trying to do one thing, and that's to get better, having been in them frequently when I was younger for a number of things, I'm not overly happy when someone says do you want to go to hospital or let's go visit your dad. The nurse had shown us to a private part of the hospital, where it was less chaotic, we were shown to a waiting room " please wait here" the nurse asked we nodded and took a seat. We had been waiting for 25 minuets and jack could tell I was getting anxious " here, Katie you alright?" He questioned, I looked at him, my face was red and sweaty " do you want a drink?" " please" I answered, jack went over to the water cooler, grabbed me a drink and gave it to me " thank you", he nodded.

Seconds, minutes and hours had been and gone, I was starting to feel deeply uncomfortable, but finally the nurse came up to us " you can go in now, room 24" " thank you" jack said, as he got up " right, come one Katie, let's go see Stan" he exclaimed, holding my hand and trying to pull me, I froze and just stood there " come on", but I didn't want to, eventually he turned round and saw my face " Katie, love" he exclaimed and hugged me " its ok, darling" he whispered in my ear " jack, I'm scared" I sobbed " Katie, I promise there's nothing to be scared about, your dad is an amazing man and I'm sure he'll get through this, now come on, your dad is waiting" he said giving me a kiss. 

No one could prepare me for what I saw. I didn't see my dad, instead I saw machines. Stan was nothing but a person with machines around him. Taking quick, deep breaths I walked over to him, his eyes moved as I did " dad" I questioned with a tear coming down my cheek, his eyes just stared at me, I put my head on his shoulder and I felt his hand on my head " I'm alright" he said as he kissed me on the forehead, " I'm alright, Katie" he protested once more.