Sméagol's Redeption

Chapter 72

So, on Monday morning, Lea's friends and family gathered by her bedside as she was being prepped for surgery.

"Hey, you," said Delaney. "How you feelin', Sweetie?"

"Scared out of my mind."

Sméagol put his arms around Lea, and played with her hair.

"I know," said Delaney, "but you're gonna be okay. You've got some of the best doctors in the state on your team, and they're gonna take good care of you."

A few tears came to Lea's eyes. Sméagol dried them. "It's alright, Precious," he said sweetly. "Sméagol's here." He kissed her cheek. "Sméagol pray for you, Precious." He held her close as everyone else bowed their heads to pray. "Dear Heavenly Father, please take good care of my baby. She's having surgery on her brain today, and she's scared to death. She needs you, Precious Lord. Please stay with her." He began to cry himself. "Please look after her. She's my precious, and I loves her more than anything in this world, so much more than the Precious." He kissed Lea's cheek again. "In Jesus' name I pray, Amen."

"Amen," everyone else agreed.

"Thanks, Sméagol," said Lea.

Soon, the surgeon arrived to take Lea off to the OR. Her friends and family all gave her hugs, and Sméagol gave her the biggest hug of all, as well as a warm, passionate kiss. Then, they all watched as the doctor wheeled her away.

A few hours later, everyone was still sitting in the waiting room, scared out of their minds, and praying everything would be okay.

"Why is it taking so damn long?" said a very shaken Delaney.

"Brain surgeries usually take a while," said Damian.

"It'll be okay, Delaney," Bri said reassuringly, patting Delaney's back. "She's gonna make it."

"How can you be so sure?" asked Delaney.

"Because, if I can survive all my trials, and come out on top, so can she. Besides, I told God she's not allowed to die."

Delaney grinned a little through her pain.

"No, but seriously, she's a strong, determined person. She's come through so much already, and she never gave up."

"And, think about this," Damian added. "Look at all the miracles that happened for Bri. I mean, she beat her eating disorder, and now, we're about to have a baby."

"Miracles happen all the time."

Delaney tried to calm herself down with positive thoughts, but she couldn't fight it anymore. "Damn it, I can't take this anymore. When is it gonna be over?!" She got up from her seat, hyperventilating.

"Delaney?" said Bri.

"I—I can't—I... I need to step outside for a bit." She ran out the door.

Sméagol hurried outside, and found her sitting on a bench, hyperventilating and sobbing uncontrollably. He climed up, and wrapped her in a warm, tight embrace. "It's alright, Precious," he whispered. "It's alright."

"This is too much!" Delaney sobbed.

"What's too much?"

"Seeing my child go through so much pain, one thing after another, and knowing there's nothing I can do to take it away."

"What's it saying?"

"When she was little, she had a best friend, Samantha. They were just like her and Bri are today, attached at the hip. Then, one day, she came home from school in tears. She told me Samantha said she didn't wanna be her friend anymore. From then on, it was the same shit. People would come into her life, acted like they gave a damn about her, and then, tossed her aside like garbage. On top of that, people who didn't even know her were so cruel to her, bullied her, convinced her she was worthless, all because of her disabilities. She couldn't catch a break, and everyday, I had to watch her suffer. No amount of love I could give her, no amount of encouragement I could offer her, nothing could take away her pain. Then, you and Bri and Damian and Aini come along, and I thought, finally, my baby's out of the woods. She's finally happy. Then, this happens, and once again, I have to watch her suffer, and I can't do a fucking thing to save her, knowing this time, I could possibly lose her forever." She began to sob even harder. "Why does it have to be this way, Sméagol? How much bullshit does she have to take before it's enough? Why is life so fucking mean to her? She doesn't deserve this! She's never done anything to deserve this, and yet... she's constantly being punished!"

Sméagol wiped a few tears from his eyes. "My precious friend, I did so many horrible things in my life. I deserved to be punished, but... I got a second chance. I found my precious Lea. I loves her so much. She makes me so happy, but I knows I don't deserves her. So... I don't know why life is so cruel to her when she has done nothing to deserve it."

"Life is so fucked up sometimes."

"I knows."

"I'm sorry I dumped all that on you. It's just... as a mom, there's nothing that hurts more than seeing your baby in pain, and nothing scarier than knowing you could lose your child forever. I'm sorry I dumped that on you."

"Don't be sorry, Precious," Sméagol said sweetly. "Sméagol understands. I'm not a father, but Lea is my baby, too. I knows I won't be alright if I loses her. But, I believes she will survive this. She's the strongest person I've ever known. She overcame so much already. It hurts me to see her suffering, too, but I knows she will be alright." He wrapped his arms around her again. "Don't be sorry for talking about this, my precious friend. You can always talk to me about anything."

"You're such a good friend, Sméagol, and no, you did not deserve any of the shit you went through. Forgive yourself."

"I will try." He got up from the bench, and took hold of Delaney's hand. "Come. Must go back inside to wait for Lea." He led her back into the waiting room, and they both sat back down with the rest of the group just as the doctor came out to talk to them.

"How is she?" asked Damian. "Did you get it all?"

"Uh... as much as we could, but... unfortunately, the tumor is located in a vital part of the brain, and has already spread to other parts of the brain."

"So... what do we do now?"" asked Delaney.

"Unfortunately, our only hope is chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy."

Delaney's heart sank.

"I'm very sorry."

"Thank you, Doctor," said Bri. "You did a good job."

"We'll, um... talk to Lea," said Delaney. "See what she wants to do."