Kindness

Goodbye Heart

I reached the hospital first. Rebecca was on her way from tennis practice. Dad was at work and said he’d visit later if he could make it. Our mother and Ruth didn’t bother to pick up the phone so I left a message on the answering machine.

    The nurse took me to his room. He had just been through surgery. They had to repair his left arm, eight broken ribs, and his broken left leg. I thanked god that he survived. I held his hand and sat beside him as he slept. I couldn’t stop crying when I looked at him.

    All of a sudden he tightened his hand around mine. I looked up to find him smiling weakly at me. I was so amazed he had the strength to comfort me when he was the one hurting.

    “Gabriella…” he said softly.

“Don’t talk Drake. You should get some rest.” I whispered. “We can talk when you wake up okay?”

“I love you Gabriella.” He murmured. “I just want you to know that okay?”

“Drake you’re not going to die. You’ll be okay,” I whimpered. “You’re not going to die.”

He pressed me closer to him and kissed my tears away. Then he softly kissed my lips.

“I love you Drake, so please don’t leave me. Stay with me,” I cried.

“My angel,” he uttered softly.

Without warning his hand fell limp and his heart rate started falling. Nurses swarmed the room calling out procedures.  Someone tried to pull me outside, but I screamed and tried to force my way back in.

“Drake…Drake!” I screamed.” No…Let me go! Drake…Drake! God please no…No!”

They finally pulled me from the room. I crumpled to the floor in tears. Drake was gone. Rebecca rounded the corner and saw me lying on the floor. She rushed to my side.

“Where’s Drake?” she shrieked. “Is he okay?”

A nurse brought us to a private room off the corner of the hospital. The walls were white, blank, and emotionless. She tried her best to comfort us before explaining what was going on.

“Mrs. Berkingston, ma’am, your son has suffered some brain damage due to the car crash. Because of that he went into a coma. This is his bodies attempt to heal itself,” She said. “Now we don’t know right now if he’ll come out of it today or years from now. What we do know is that his brain needs time to heal.”

“God help me” Rebecca whispered. “What am I supposed to do now?”

“Right now all you can do is wait and watch. It’s getting late I would suggest you go home and get some rest. We can talk more tomorrow.”

“Rebecca please don’t make me go. I don’t want to leave Drake here all alone.” I begged. “Please let me stay.”

“Would it be alright if we stayed overnight?” she pleaded with the nurse.

“I can have an extra bed set up in his room and some blankets sent in.” the nurse replied.

An hour later we were set up in Drake’s room. He was motionless on his bed, quietly breathing through a tube. He looked so helpless and alone. Rebecca turned on the television and flipped to the cartoons. She leaned back and wrapped me in her arms.

     I fell asleep to Rebecca’s shaky breathing and awoke to her tears. I didn’t move, I just held her tighter and let her cry. My father didn’t arrive until late the next morning. He brought two cups of coffee, a change of clothes for both Rebecca and me, and a balloon that read May God carry you through hard times. I was grateful he showed up. Rebecca would need his support. I changed in the bathroom while they talked.

    “Dustin why didn’t you come to the hospital yesterday?” she cried. “I needed you! Is work that important that your family no longer matters?”

    “Rebecca please you know I’m doing this for all of you.” He answered. “I love you; you know that…I don’t want to fail you”

“Oh Dustin I just wish you’d take some time off so you can spend time with this family, you’re family! The one you’re doing all this for.” She said sadly.

In the bathroom I slowly forced my clothes on, brushed the hair out of my face, and tried to drive the tears back into my eyes.

I opened the door to find my father and Rebecca embracing each other tightly. She sobbed uncontrollably into his shoulder as he held the back of her head and talked to her in a soothing voice.

I walked over to Drake’s bed and sat down on the stool placed beside it. It seemed like he was only sleeping; eyes closed, hands relaxed, and hair slightly tussled. 

“I’m taking Rebecca down to the food court before we see the doctor. Are you going to be okay in here alone?” My father questioned.

I slowly pushed the air from my lungs which caused me to shiver.

“I’m not alone…I have Drake.”

“We’ll be back soon.” My father stated as he closed the door behind him with a still sobbing Rebecca.

I held Drake’s hand in both of mine, caressing the roughness I found there.

“God I don’t understand. Why Drake? Why now? Why take someone who means so much to me?

Why not me? Please God bring him back to us…I love him!” I cried into his hand.

“I’m betting he dies within the week.” I heard a familiar voice snicker.

Ruth stood at the entrance of the room smiling sweetly at me.

    “I’m only joking.” She laughed. “We wouldn’t want your lover boy to die now would we?”

    She strolled over to the other side of Drake’s bed and sat down. Then she lifted his other hand high above her head and then she let it drop with a thud.

    “He’s gotten so cute! What a shame…So did you guys do it?” She asked giddily.

    Out of kindness I didn’t slap Ruth, shove her into the nearest wall, slap her again, or glare at her. I looked at her with honesty.

    “I love him Ruth and He loves me. He promised we wouldn’t do that unless we were married.”

    “So I guess that means you’re just not attractive enough for him,” She laughed. “Hmm could be that wrinkly scare.”

    “We both trust in God and if we were to do that it would be a sin,” I said ignoring her rudeness.“We wanted to wait.”

    “So what are you saying about me? I doubt that’s the reason he won’t sleep with you! Trust me I know men and that’s the one thing they can’t resist.” She smirked. “Face it Gabbie if he somehow made it out of this alive he wouldn’t choose you!”

    She stood up and headed toward the door, turning back she glared at me.

    “I’m leaving now. Mom’s waiting down stairs. She thought it would be funny to watch you cry and I can’t wait until she finds out how right she was.”

    She slammed the door behind her.

    I cried so hard and so loud the nurses rushed in worried. God I missed Drake; the way he laughed, his smile, and the little things he did out of kindness. Now it seemed I would never hear his voice again, see his eyes light up, or feel his warming touch again.

    Every day without fail I visited Drake. I read to him parts of my diary, I told him about my day, and what was going on in the world. I let him know that I was there for him and I prayed someday he would come back to me.

    Then one day he felt cold.