Macaronic

Chapter Twenty-Two

     Avoiding Shelby in order to stay 100% loyal to Ross was harder than I thought. She had been visiting the hospital more often than usual, and I couldn't just stop going. Red needed me. I tried to keep tabs on her, always knowing when she was going to be there. Awkward encounters were not my thing and I wasn't going to start now.

     This morning, Red was going to have a procedure done, and afterwards he would start taking new medicine. As bad as it may sound, I was happy that Shelby couldn't make it, because I desperately wanted to be with him for that.

     No, I do not see Red as a love interest. He's moved up from 'best friend' to more like a 'little brother'. I cared for him more than I cared for most people, because I knew if our places were switched, he'd do the same thing.

     I walked into the hospital and made my way up to the floor Red was located on. Before I came in, I made some pineapple jello cake to bring him so he could eat it before his procedure.

     I remember in junior high, he came over almost everday, and he would save his leftover jello cake from lunch for until we got home. His mother made it for him everyday, and we both enjoyed it. We would sit on my front porch steps, eating it and talking about all sorts of things. We'd sit out there until my father came home from work, and then we'd play in the backyard until my mother called us in for dinner.

     We created so many good memories with that jello cake. I figured it'd be a nice treat for him, and take his mind off of all this.

     I walked in after I knocked and he waved me in. I set down the bag and took out the jello and a couple of spoons. His face lit up, it could've illuminated the whole city.

"Your mum gave me the recipe the other day, and it took me a while to perfect it but I think it'll be pretty good. Maybe not as amazing as hers, though," I smiled.

     Red thanked me with a nod as I handed him a plate with a sliver of cake on it, and a plastic spoon. I planted myself on the edge of his hospital bed.

"Taste alright?" I asked, in which he replied with a nod.

"Are you nervous?" Another nod.

"Well don't be, I'm sure it'll help you out a ton," I said.

     I threw away our dirty plates and put the rest of the cake in his refrigerator. I sat once again in the hospital bed, looking over the machines to make sure everything was all good.

"You know, I think I wanna be a nurse," I said. "I love helping people, and I know all the doctors already," I laughed.

     Red pulled out his phone and sent me a text. 'You should, you'd be great,' it read.

"Maybe. It's a lot of work though,"

'You're hardworking. You'd be able to handle it,' He texted.

"You think?" I asked, and he nodded. "Then I just might do that,"

     His doctors soon came in and told me that they'd be taking him out. I went and sat in the waiting room, waving to him as he was wheeled down the hall into the surgical ward.

     For the first few hours, I was a nervous wreck. I trusted his doctors and knew the procedure would go well, but I knew how anxious and afraid he got with these types of things. I worried he'd be scared, feel trapped and alone. If they allowed it, I would be right by his side through the whole thing.

     I seemed to have drifted off to sleep, and woke up with a sore neck. I checked to see that it was almost 11 at night. I went to Red's room and found him sleeping in his bed. He seemed calm, and he didn't look any different. I hoped that was a sign that everything turned out okay.

     I curled in the chair beside his bed and just sat for a while, thinking to myself.

     I never met my grandfather, because he died before I was born. He was a coal miner for the longest time, and ended up dying from his lungs being infected and destroyed by all the chemicals he was exposed to on a daily basis. I remember my grandmother saying 'if I knew how dangerous it was, I would've stopped him instantly,'.

     I felt the same way, and beat myself up about it. If I knew about Red's smoking problem, I would've been the one to break his habit. I knew stuff like this could happen, but he never even showed signs of being addicted to smoking.

     Keeping secrets can destroy lives. Not just emotionally, but physically. If you think keeping in a secret is worth risking your life, you're so far from being right. Someone might be right in front of you, ready to save you from your addiction or your fear. All you have to do is speak up. Remain an open book, you never know what you might be saving.

**hey.... so yeah Macaronic is back. I felt like I left too much unanswered and I didn't wanna create a sequel so I decided to delete the last chapter (which jumps way into the future) and continue the book. let me know what you guys think!!!**