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“Oh, I will.”
“This is a second chance for you, I hope you understand that.”
“I’m so appreciative,” I say, my voice shaking. “But Kenneth, why are you doing this for me?”
There’s a long pause on the other end before he speaks again.
“Because someone once gave me a second chance, and that changed my life. And I found my car pretty quickly after seeing you, so I was in a good mood. Take this opportunity with everything you have, Emma.”
“I really will, Kenneth.”
“I hope you are the exceptional exception to all the other wannabes out there.”
The call ends, and my heart is racing. My head is spinning with what I have to do next.
Well, I’ll have to go off and get new ballet shoes. I’ll have to break into my savings.
But this is important. This has been what I’ve been saving for. This is a once-in-a-million opportunity.
Kenneth is right, I can’t let this chance slip through my fingers again.
I look up at my poster of Swan Lake hanging on my bedroom wall and smile. This time I’ll be ready for this audition. This time I will really prove how much this all means to me.
But before I get a moment to really let it all sink in, on the bed my phone rings.
What is it today with all these phone calls?
I pick it up.
And I hear my mother’s voice.
And I can immediately that something is very, very wrong.
49
AUGUST
“Ah, my flying superhero, how are we today?” I ask as I duck into the room.
Ethan turns in his bed to face me. A monitor connected to him beeps positively as the boy glances up at me with his large, expressive eyes. His childish innocence makes even my cold heart soften a little.
“Better,” he whispers to me, his voice barely making it across the room.
“Better? That’s what I want to hear. I love that optimism, Ethan. Keep it up.”
But as much as I know he might be feeling better today, his little body is slowly failing him in the long term. With his worsening condition, today might be good, but tomorrow might be a bad day. And the day after that could be even worse.
But I want to focus on today, both him and me. I want to focus on the positives.
I want this strong boy to feel good, even for one day.
I take my usual seat by his bedside.
“Is it okay if we talk?” I ask him. “I like talking to you, Ethan. Do you have time for an old doctor like me?”
“Yep,” he replies. “I like talking to you, too.”
“I like your polite manners,” I say. “They’re rare to find nowadays.”
