| �Hello?� I asked as I picked up the phone. �Mrs. Dorough?� �This is she.� �This is Dr. Martin. Um, something came up with your daughter. Please come to the hospital as soon as possible.� �I�ll be there in half an hour Dr. Martin.� I hung up the phone, worried beyond belief. �Josefina, come here,� I said. She walked down the stairs slowly, looking tired. �Yes mama?� �Put your shoes on, we have to go to the hospital.� �But why mama?� �Something happened with your tests sweetheart. So, let�s go see, okay?� �Sure mama.� I watched as Josefina put her shoes on. �What could possibly have happened?� I thought to myself. �She was totally healthy when she was born. That was only six years ago.� �Ready to go sweetie?� I asked. �Sure thing mom. Are we going to go get daddy?� �No honey, there�s no reason to worry him. Come on.� We walked outside and drove off to the hospital. I sat in the waiting room, waiting for Dr. Martin to finish with his other patient. I glanced up as the door opened. �Mrs. Dorough?� �Yes, that�s me Dr. Martin.� �May I ask where Mr. Dorough is?� �We�re separated, why?� �Julia, take Josefina to the play-land.� I watched as a nurse stood by Joesfina and walked off with her. �Now, may I call you Theresa?� I looked at him but nodded my head. �Okay, let�s walk around for a little bit. Have you ever heard of Lupus?� �Yeah. Howie, my husband, well, his sister had it. But she passed away before Josefina was born.� �Well, Josefina attracted Lupus Theresa. And, I talked it over with some doctors, and she�s had it for 6 months. Since it�s been untreated for so long, she has about a little less than a year before she passes away.� �WHAT ARE YOU SAYING? ARE YOU SAYING MY CHILD IS GOING TO DIE?� I yelled. �Theresa, please. I can�t figure out how she came with it, but she has it, and it�s already effecting her. I�m so sorry Theresa. Does Howie live here?� �Yeah.� �Are you going to talk to him? Or would you like me to do it?� �No, I�ll talk to him.� �If you don�t mind me asking, she was getting a very intense physical, why?� �She was going with her dad on tour. Thank you Dr. Martin for your time.� �I wish there was something I could do.� �Trust me, you�ve done enough Dr. Martin. Now, if you�ll excuse me, I�ve got some people I have to talk to.� �By all means.� I wiped my eyes and went to find the play-land where the nurse took her. I walked to the window and saw her playing with some kids. �Mommy!� I heard her yell. She came running up to me, arms wide open. I picked her up and held her close. �These kids are so nice mom. But I won�t end up here, huh?� I looked down at her, holding in my own tears. �No sweetie. Hey hon, would you like to go see Daddy and Grandma tonight?� �Oh, can we please mom.� I looked at her, her smiling face. Her brown eyes light up whenever someone mentioned her dad. She had his eyes. My nose, and my freckles. She had his hair, long and curly. And she was the cutest little girl around. �Yeah sweetie. I think you should stay the night at Grandma�s, what do you think?� �Oh mom, I would love that! Come on mom, let�s go.� I drove up to my old house. I took a deep breath and watched as Josefina got out of the car and ran up the front door. I stood against my car and let a few tears slip out, knowing her days were counted. I watched as Howie opened the door. My jaw opened and couldn�t close. �Damn, after being separated, he still looks damn hot,� I thought to myself. He picked up Josefina and swung her around. I saw Paula step up behind Howie and hold Josefina in her arms. I wiped my eyes and looked away and around the neighborhood. �Nothing changed in the last two years,� I thought again. �Theresa, what�s wrong?� I heard Howie ask. I wiped my eyes and looked deep into his brown eyes. I glanced up and noticed Paula had closed the door. I covered my face, sob after sob racking my body. �Oh God, Resa, come on girl, what happened?� He pulled me into his arms and my head fell to his shoulder. �Shh, baby, it�s okay, what happened?� My arms wrapped around his waist, holding him close. In two years, that was the closest we had touched. �Baby?� I shook my head and just let the tears fall. �Sweetie, what happened? Did something happen to Josefina?� I just shook my head. �Did something happen to you?� I heard him ask, his voice raising just a notch. �He still cares,� I thought to myself. Yet again, I shook my head. �Resa, honey, come on, what happened?� I pulled my head up and wiped my tears with one hand. �I went to the doctors today. They got her physical back. She has Lupus Howie, and Dr. Martin says he�s giving her a little less than a year to live,� I said, as another sob shook my body. His face dropped and I saw the tears start coming out of his eyes. �Oh God, not my girl,� he mumbled. I pulled him into my arms and he held me. I softly caressed his back, lightly kissing his head. �God,� he mumbled against my shoulder. �I know Howie. I figured I should come tell you right away. I said she could stay the night at her Grandma�s, so that we could talk about what we want to do.� He pulled away and looked at me. �Yeah, that sounds, yeah,� he said, nodding his head. I picked his hand up in mine and lightly kissed it. �No matter what Howie, I�ll be there for you.� �Sounds like a promise I once heard.� I looked up at him and he saw the hurt in my eyes. �Oh God, I didn�t mean that to sound bad sweetheart. You know I love you more than words could ever express. I loved you then and I love you now.� �I know Howie, and I love you too.� �Look, for the sake of our child, why don�t you move back in?� �We�ll talk about it. But right now, I�m not making promises. Let�s go.� We walked up the steps and into the house. I gazed around, noticing not to much had changed. I painting here and there, that was about it. �Hey Paula,� I said, sitting down on the couch. |
| A Second Chance By: Resa Dorough |
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