ode to life | cameron dallas

Chapter 45

5:57PM

The doorbell rang as Cameron fled the flight of stairs to answer the main doors.

"Don't worry, Taylor, I got it!" He called to his butler.

He answered the door gracefully, but frowned to see that it was not his wife on the other side of the door.

"Nice to see you, too, Cam. Jeez," Linda muttered at his frown.

"I'm sorry, Linda, come on in," Cameron smiled, pulling her into a welcoming embrace.

"Can I just say that that jet, or plane or whatever parked on top of your roof landing, is the most bad ass thing I've seen in my entire life?"

"Helicopter. And thanks, I'm piloting it myself tonight. All the way to Dubai," Cameron said gleefully.

"Romantic," Linda smirked. "I'm sorry I'm late, by the way. I just had dinner with my daughter."

"Oh, it's fine. How is she? Finally opening up to you?"

"It took about four years or some, but I think I can finally say we're getting there," she smiled, handing her coat to Taylor. "I hope I didn't come too late."

"You aren't as late as my wife."

"Oh, cut her some slack, Cam. She's a pregnant surgeon," Linda said. "Now where is my favorite God-daughter?"

"You're only God-daughter is in the nursery," Cameron replied, leading Linda to the nursery room. "And I'm aware she's a surgeon and she's pregnant, but still. She knows how important tonight is, and she still hasn't arrived."

"What time is she suppose to meet you?"

"6."

"It's 6, now. Why don't you call her?" Linda asked. "There's my wittle, tiny, millionaire, God-daughter!" She picked up the two year old from her crib and cradled her in her arms.

"I would, if I could find my phone. I've been looking for it for hours now," Cameron sighed.

"Were you seriously about to leave to Dubai without your cellphone?"

"I'm looking for it!"

7:33PM

"W-When was the last time you had it? I mean you can't just lose your phone at home."

"I'm not worried about my phone, Linda. If a real emergency happened, she would have contacted yours, she knows you're with me," Cameron said. "This is just Ariel trying to prove her nobility to the other surgeons."

"It doesn't sound like Ariel."

Cameron sighed. "I know."

9:04PM

"How in the world did you get so good at monopoly? I didn't know they allowed board games in prison."

Linda squinted her eyes at him. "You're just mad I'm winning! I use to play with my daughter before I got thrown into the slammer," Linda smirked. "Mountview Blv.! You landed on my hotel! That's $350, baby!"

Cameron sighed as he began sorting out the paper money. "Thanks for staying, Linda. You can leave, if you want. I'm sorry, I didn't know she was going to bail," Cameron said.

"She's not a bailer, Cam," Linda mumbled. "She did whatever she's doing, with reason. Now pay up."

11:46PM

"Maybe she met a hot-shot doctor over there. One that's, you know, hella fucking superior to a writer," Cameron slurred, with a beer bottle to his lips, eyes glued to the 90" flat screen glowing on the wall.

"Shut up," Linda mumbled, flipping through channels on the remote.

"Linda, drink with me. It feels weird and lonely as hell drinking alone."

"No. You shouldn't even be drinking yourself. Aren't you suppose to be piloting a helicopter soon?"

"IF SHE WOULD JUST COME!" Cameron shouted.

"I bet she called you about fifty times, and you don't even know it because you lost your fuckin' phone."

"Linda. We tried calling her from yours. I know she took on another surgery," Cameron sneered. "Why, why, why did I have to fall in love with a med student?"

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Linda yelled as she chucked a pillow at him.

***

1:03AM

"Excellent job, Dr. Dallas. I'm proud of you."

"Thank you, Chief. I've never done anything like that before," Ariel sighed accomplished, looking down at Mr. Duncan who was well alive, and sound asleep on his hospital bed. "I better get going now."

"You don't want to be around when Mr. Duncan awakes? He's going to want to praise you."

"The thing is, Sir, I was suppose to be home seven hours ago, flying to Dubai with my husband. I don't really have time to spare."

"I understand. Thank you for your hard work tonight. The entire team is impressed."

"The entire team probably hates me," Ariel laughed. "But thank you, Sir. I'll see you when I get back."

1:24AM

"Damn phone, why must you die on me?" Ariel said to herself as she entered her car and began the engine. She turned the radio on and backed out of the hospital parking lot.

Her thoughts began to linger around the exhausting day she just had, and she planned what she would say to Cameron.

He would forgive her. He would have to forgive her. They made vows to forgive each other. A patient's life was on the line and Ariel had saved him. Cameron would understand. There were far worst things that the couple had faced in the past, and this had happened within reason.

Still, Ariel was not entirely convinced. She began to think about Mr. Duncan and his wife, or ex-wife, technically. They had an ode to life together, as well. To be there for each other, even if they weren't with each other. Ariel saw the way Adelaide immensely influenced Mr. Duncan's life, even after her death.
That was love.

Ariel braked before the red stoplight before her and continued to let her thoughts flood in even more. Ariel and Cameron's ode wasn't so different. It was all about sacrificing for each other. And if love were enough, Cameron would realize the sacrifices he had to make in order to love Ariel, even with her career.

The stoplight was still red, but the streets were completely empty. Suddenly, an urgent pang of pain stung Ariel internally in her belly, causing her to shout. "Agh! Please don't kick mommy right now, Aaron." She rubbed her belly with her free hand and closed her eyes, breathing slow breaths in and out.

The stoplight flickered green, and gradually, Ariel stepped on the gas to cross the street. Everything after, happened in the duration of a blink of an eye. It was quiet, until it was not. It was dark, until it was not. There was peace, until there was not.

From her left, bright lights shone from a ditzy car that had lost sudden control. She slammed on the gas to try to dodge the drunken vehicle but timing had failed to concur. Instinctively, she shut her eyes, braced herself and held her belly that grew a whole other life. The car slammed into hers catastrophically, sounding like nuclear bombs that went off simultaneously to the crash. The airbags sprung open, as her vehicle spun five or six more times rapidly around the empty street. She opened her eyes as the car spun, but could only see the vivid blurs of the city. That, and a very, very bright light that shone in the center of her vision. It was bright, yet peaceful and Ariel remained looking straight at it, before the car's final crash into a nearby city tree.