Grant made a face. Though it was supposed to be scentless, the smell made Grant want to gag.
“I had a nice talk with Hailey this morning,” Melissa said, moving to the chair next to Grant’s bed.
“She told me,” Grant said weakly.
“She’s so wonderful,” Melissa declared. “She’s in the lobby with Leah right now, watching the fountain on the wall.”
“She wants to go into special education,” Grant said proudly.
“I think she’ll be great,” Melissa agreed. “She is so patient and loving with Leah.”
“She says Leah helped her find her calling,” Grant smiled.
Melissa looked toward the door, seeming distracted, knowing David and her daughter wouldn’t be far behind.
“Mel, what’s going on?” Grant eyed her.
One side of Melissa’s mouth rose into a loaded smile. “I have a secret,” she whispered.
Grant raised an eyebrow.
“I know this may sound strange, but I haven’t told anyone,” Melissa confessed excitedly. “Not even David. Until today, it’s been my little secret.”
Grant held up his hand, symbolizing Scout’s honor. “I’ll take it to my grave.”
Melissa ignored the pointedness of his words and reached for Grant’s hand. “I’m pregnant,” she blurted.
“What?” Grant gasped.
“Yeah,” Melissa nodded excited. “David and I are having another baby!”
“Why is that a secret?” Grant smiled.
Melissa shrugged, then her shoulders sank. “We said we weren’t going to have another baby,” she sighed. “You know…incase any of Leah’s problems are genetic…something we passed along to her.” Her excitement seemed to transition into anxiety. “I just don’t know what David is going to say. I mean, having a child like Leah is very expensive, and all the doctors’ appointments and therapy sessions can weigh very heavily on a marriage. Don’t get me wrong…Leah has been the greatest blessing that David and I could have ever imagined…it’s just…”
“Now you’re worried about the baby too,” Grant nodded.
“Yeah,” Melissa replied, lowering her head. “I mean…Leah’s perfect…”
“I understand,” Grant smiled at his sister-in-law.
Melissa laughed. “When I dreamed about becoming a mother, there were so many things I planned to do. I was going to be that mother who had it all together! And I am so not that mom! Autism kicks my butt on a lot of days. Today’s a good day…and I realize that even with a neurotypical child not every single day is going to be a great day, but it’s different. My days are consumed by Leah and her needs, and that may never ever change…no matter how old she gets. That’s why I’m so nervous about the new baby! What if the new baby has special needs…what if I just can’t do it all…”
“You’d find a way,” Grant said confidently. “I know you would. You’re an awesome mom!”
Melissa sighed. “I pray you’re right.”
“I’m glad God gave Leah to you and my brother,” Grant smiled. “A special kid deserves special parents.”
Melissa smiled, swiping at her tears. “I am truly blessed to be Leah’s mommy!”
Grant squeezed Melissa’s hand. “Maybe you’re worrying for nothing. But, even if there are problems with the baby, I know you…you’ll figure it out.”
Melissa smiled at Grant and kissed his cheek. “Thank you, Baby,” she whispered as she noticed for the first time just how much weight Grant had lost since Christmas.
“Just promise me that if it’s a boy, you’ll name him Grant,” Grant winked.
“And if it’s a girl?” Melissa raised her eyebrow.
“Leah Junior,” Grant shrugged easily.
Melissa laughed with joyful delight. “I knew there was a reason you were the first person I told!”
Suddenly, Grant’s excitement turned introspective. “I want to meet the baby,” he said, an ominous undertone to his voice.
A lump formed in Melissa’s throat. She stared at her brother-in-law, her husband’s baby brother, her sweet daughter’s doting uncle, the young man so full of potential whom she had seen be transformed in front of her eyes. He had his daddy’s broad shoulders and his mother’s understated features, David’s dark brown eyes, Joanna’s libelous grin, Ike’s deep dimples, Rachel’s effortless beauty and blond hair that was all his own. He had been young, vibrant, so full of life… “You will,” she gulped, and she hated the uncertainty that rang in her own voice.
Having already stayed well past the start of the new year, Grant’s siblings had been forced by obligations and responsibilities to return to their homes in North Carolina. Randy had gone back too, but only long enough to pack another suitcase and return to Nora’s childhood bedroom that awaited him at Granny Miller’s house.
Hailey was sitting next to Grant’s bed, where she had been camped out for at least three days. Grant was getting thinner; his skin was incredibly pale, and deep purple circles had formed under his eyes. He had been violently ill over the past three days, so sick, in fact, that Hailey knew it had been more than forty-eight hours since he had spoken to her. She sat by his bed, watching nurses come in and out as they tended to him. She taped Get Well cards to the wall and read new ones that Jessica delivered from people in Hope Hull. She read every kind word to Grant, knowing that, even though there was no response, he could hear her. She prayed without ceasing; even at night, it was impossible not to be interrupted by nurses who were in and out, but sometimes she would hold Grant’s hand and pray aloud, even as they worked.
Hailey thought about the movies she had seen about characters who had cancer, and she realized now that, though the plot twists were always emotional, the stories were told through the glamorous lenses of a Hollywood camera. There was so much they didn’t tell you, so much reality they left out. They wouldn’t have been pretty to watch, but maybe they would have better prepared her for this nightmare. She wondered more about her mother’s passing than she ever had. She suddenly wanted to know the details of her suffering and the unspoken truths of her day-to-day fight. She wouldn’t ask her father though; she knew he probably didn’t want to talk about it. She certainly couldn’t imagine talking about her experience now to anyone else. Could anyone who hadn’t been in her position possibly understand the fears that danced in her head every moment of the day as she watched the person she loved battling such a ruthless disease?
Hailey felt alienated from her friends in a way, mostly because she felt much older than them now. Their relationships with their revolving boyfriends and girlfriends, winter formal drama and high school gossip all felt so trivial. She and Grant had gone from being high school sweethearts to two people in love, questioning college and sex and summer jobs and all the normal things. Now, they were so much more than that. All the layers that complicated young love had been peeled away in a life-altering moment, and they had grown closer in a way that had automatically ushered them from childhood into adulthood.
Grant was awake, his eyes fixed on Hailey as she read from the small devotional book she had been reading to him each day. When she was done reading, she closed the book, sat it aside and stood, so she could lean over next to Grant and kiss him on the cheek.
