Almost Friends

Chapter 15- Kyle

Chapter Fifteen

Kyle

Imprévu et indésirable

I'm so glad I went to dinner with Eric.

And I still can't stop smiling. I hit the brakes as our neighborhood's gate takes forever to ease open. For once, I don't mind that it's so slow.

Utterly content, I lean back in my seat and close my eyes.

Tonight was, hands down, the best first date I've ever been on. Eric's ...perfect.

First of all, he looks like a hotter version of Jesse Metcalfe. But he's more than just a pretty face: he's relatable and smart. In fact, he's so smart that he actually has a plan for the future! I've never gone out a guy who knows what he wants to do with his life. Even the nineteen-year-old I hooked up with for a hot second last January had no idea where he was going in life. But Eric's already got it all figured out.

A car honks behind me and I open my eyes.

I accelerate through the opened gate and speed down my neighborhood's main street, still smiling like a dork. I can't help myself; it's been a long time since I've felt like this. I don't even know what this feeling is ...

My grin widens.

...yes I do. I think it' happiness.

I turn onto our street and there are an ambulance and fire truck in front of our house.

My smile fades.

***

"Mom?" I shout as I hurry through our front door.

I come to a halt and my purse slips out of my hands, falling to the floor.

Grandma's stretched out on the couch while two paramedics kneel beside her. One of them, an older guy with salt and pepper hair, asks her questions in French. Grandma's eyes are open, but she looks odd and I don't think she's answering him. My heart pounding, I start towards her.

"Grandma?" My voice breaks and someone grabs my hand. It's Mom.

Words push themselves to my lips, how I don't know. "What happened?"

Mom's eyes are red and her voice is soft as she answers me: "They suspect she's had a stroke, they're going to take her to the hospital."

Cam Hong is all at once beside me. She picks my purse up from the floor and says, "Mom's going to ride in the ambulance with Grandma. You can come with me in my car."

I nod, barely registering what my sister's said. All I can do is stare at Grandma. Her dark eyes, more frightened than I've ever seen them, go from one paramedic to the other. The salt and pepper haired paramedic leans towards her and, speaking with a thick Cajun accent, says, "Nous allons à l'hôpital. D'accord?"

Grandma looks at him and blinks, but says nothing.

Her deep brown eyes, the same color and shape as mine, dart to me. I try to smile at her, but I just can't.

Grandma is my link to who I really am; she's the living history that runs through my veins, she's what makes my heritage real. If it weren't for her I wouldn't really understand where I come from. And if she dies, ... I gulp and Mom gives my hand a hard squeeze.

For the first time in very long time, I say a silent prayer.

Dear God, please let Grandma be okay ...