AllFreeNovel
Share Us
But it’s worth experiencing all the eyes on me, seeing the wide ones of the two girls who were talking about him just before I slip into my seat.
CHAPTERTWENTY-EIGHT
HOLDEN
My phone buzzes with a call from an unknown number right as I reach the main doors of the sports center. My steps slow and my stomach twists as I accept the call.
Wondering if it’s the one I’ve been waiting for.
“Hello?”
“Holden, it’s Dr. Meyers. Is this an okay time for you to talk?”
“Yeah, now’s good.”
My heartbeat quickens to a dizzying pace as I walk over to the stone wall that’s part of the decorative entrance to the sports center. Lean against it, barely registering the scrape of the stones against the thin barrier of my basketball shorts.
“I’m sorry, but our testing indicates you are not a viable match to…”
Blood rushes in my ears, the rest of his words nothing but a nonsensical blur.
I’m expecting the relief. I was just handed theget out of jail freecard. There’s nothing I can do for her. I can play my senior season. No choice can be made.
What I’m not expecting?
The disappointment.
Part of me wanted to do it. To save her life.
So I wasn’t an orphan.
So I didn’t have to bury another parent.
So I could prove to myself—to her—that I’m different. That she was right that day in the parking lot, and we were better off without her.
“Holden?” Dr. Meyers says.
“Uh, yeah. I’m still here.”
“It was a beautiful gesture.”
My molars grind. Beautiful andpointless.
“What will happen to my mom now?” I ask.
“We’ll continue to search for another donor.”
“What are the chances of that happening?”
There’s a pause that gives me a pretty good idea of the odds. “I couldn’t put a precise number on it,” he finally answers. “But I can tell you we’ll do everything in our power to help your mother.”
I nod, then remember he can’t see me. “Okay. Thank you.”
“You’re a good man, Holden.”
“Not really the thought that counts here. She’s dying anyway.”
“I understand the situation between you two is complicated. But I think you should tell your mother you got tested. I think it would mean a lot to her.”
