One Hell Of A Life

chapter twenty six: visiting.

Deji POV:

My dad, JJ and I had just entered the hospital ward that Emmy was staying on. She was 11 at the time, and it was the December of 2009 - we were all wrapped up in big coats, and I was wearing a bobble hat while JJ sported his usual snapback of the time.

I remember this quite vividly.

It must've been a few hours since she'd had her operation. It was late afternoon, anyway. This one was to replace her natural pacemaker with an artificial one. The thought of my little sister being under the knife for the second time in just a couple of months made me feel sick.

The closure of the hole in Em's heart that had appeared whilst she had leukaemia didn't help much with the pace of her heart. Arrhythmias was the name of the condition that she had. It meant that her heartbeat was too irregular. The first operation left her with a huge scar down the middle of her chest where her sternum had been sliced in order to get to her heart. Fair enough, it let her breathe properly, but the main problem was still the arrhythmias.

We could tell that she wasn't completely better because her lips and fingernails were still tinted blue from lack of oxygen. That's why Mum took her back to the hospital.

Anyway, after worst-case-scenario thoughts popped in and out of my head, the lady at the CCU (coronary care unit) desk asked who we were here to see, and my Dad immediately replied with "Emilohi Olatunji." The receptionist nodded, and led us to the room in which she was staying. She opened the door for us, holding it whilst we three entered the room. Then, she disappeared back to the desk.

I looked over to the bed.

There was little Emmy, not even two years younger than me, with needles in her hands, tubes going up her nose, and weary eyes. There was a nurse in there with her, along with Mum. The nurse was speaking to Em - having an ordinary day-to-day conversation. I suppose that must've made her feel less helpless.

"Deji." Em pushed herself onto her elbows, shuffling back so that her head was properly propped up by two bulky pillows. "Dad, JJ." Her eyes lit up at the sight of us.
"Are you Emilohi's father?" The nurse asked Dad.
"Yes." He replied.
"If I could have a quick word outside with you and her mother that would be great." She smiled warmly as the adults left the room.

"Hey." I fought back tears. I was always the softie when it came to seeing Em in hospital. It pained me to see her in such a helpless state. "How are you doing?" I asked as JJ perched at the end of her bed.
"I'm doing okay, I think." Emmy nodded definitely.
"How's the bandage?" JJ patted the left side of his chest
"Sore. I'm not allowed to do football for six weeks." She rolled her eyes, "I get my stitches taken out in a week."
"Were you awake when they did it?" I remember asking.
"Yeah! It didn't hurt or anything, though, because I'm solid-"

Just then, our parents and the nurse re-entered the room with smiles on their faces.
"Emmy, you're able to come home, now." The nurse looked over in our direction. "Your parents have said it's okay, since you're taking the surgery well."
"Really?" Em's eyes widened; all of a sudden she looked more alive.
"Yes." Nurse chuckled. "Mum, Dad - we'll meet you and Emmy's brothers in the waiting area in about thirty minutes."

I'm assuming that Emmy then had the needles removed from her hands and arms, the pipes from her nose, and got her dressed with the clothes that she'd been given by Mum. Not long afterwards, my sister appeared, making a beeline for us.
"Alright, Em?" Dad took her in his arms, wary of her fragile chest.
"Yup." She nodded, sighing happily.

She was going home.

a/n:

short one, sorry.

apologies in advance - there won't be any new chapters for around two weeks. i'm not on top of my game lmao, however i think i have finally got a fixed plan for how this book will go. i need to think about that a little more and then write the chapters.

i'm actually so excited to share what this book will become, but that will come in good time. for now, thank you for reading. the support has been mental these past few weeks, i am very grateful.

see you soon.

lee x