Sméagol's Redeption

Chapter 54

That Saturday, everyone met up for JamFam again, and were pleasantly surprised to see Bri and Damian walking through the door.

"Hey, everyone," Bri greeted. "I—"

"Excuse me," said a voice, "am I in the right place?" It was Madilyn.

"Are you looking for JamFam?"

"Yes, I am."

"Then, you're in the right place."

"Oh, good."

"Come in. Sit wherever you want."

Madilyn sauntered in, and sat next to Sméagol. "Hey, Sméagol. Hey, Lea."

"Hi," Sméagol and Lea said at the same time.

"You know each other?" asked Bri.

"Yeah," said Madilyn, "we met at the hospital the other day. They invited me to come here."

"Oh, awesome."

"I'm Madilyn, by the way."

"Well, welcome, Madilyn."

"Thank you."

"Welcome back, everyone. I'm Bri, and I'm recovered from an eating disorder."

"Hi, Bri," everyone said.

"Hi. So, I know I've been absent for the past few weeks, but I promise I have a good explanation for that. Or, maybe it's just an excuse, but—"

"No, it's a valid reason," Lea chimed in reassuringly.

"Thanks, Honey. So, anyway, basically, I fell into a deep depression, because as the birth of my baby gets closer, I got scared that I might be a lousy mother, and I was afraid that, because of what my eating disorder has done to my body, I'm worried that I might not be around long enough to see my child grow up. I got scared that I would die young, and leave them without a mommy. Then, a few days ago, I was on my way to the store to buy some things for the baby, because Damian and I are setting up the nursery, when I was hit by a drunk driver... at ten in the morning."

"What kind of whackjob gets drunk, and drives around at ten in the morning?" asked Austin.

"I know, right?" Bri agreed. "That's what I thought, too. But, anyway, thankfully, I only ended up with a minor concussion, and the baby's totally okay. But, I learned that, maybe I won't be a perfect mom, but I know I can be a good enough mom for my child. Lea reminded me that I was always there to take care of her."

"And, you take care of us every Saturday," added Rachel.

"Right, and I also learned that... miracles happen. I don't know for sure that I'm gonna die in ten years. I could still live a long time, and actually get to be there for all the important moments in my baby's life. I mean, I remember being told that I wouldn't recover from my eating disorder. So many people doubted me, and that made me doubt myself, but I proved them wrong. I can't promise I won't relapse again, but I know that, if I do, I recovered once. I can do it again. I remember when the doctors told me I would never be able to have children. Well..." she patted her belly. "I think I proved them wrong. So, maybe my third miracle will be living longer than I thought. I don't know that for sure, but I realized that... whether I do or don't, I have to make every moment count. We all do. We all need to cherish and hold onto the ones we love, live life to the fullest, because we really never know how long we have on this Earth."

"I, more than anyone, know that," said Madilyn. "I have a six-year-old daughter, Meredith, who's been fighting cancer for a while, Leukemia to be exact. The other day, I was told her treatments aren't working anymore, and she has only six months left to live."

"Oh, no, Honey, I'm so sorry," Bri said sadly.

"So, my husband and I are making it a point to make every moment with her special, starting with the day we found out she was dying. That was when we met Sméagol. He came up to her, held her,comforted her... as well as me, and he even sang to her. She was scared out of her mind about dying." Madilyn began to cry. "Then, Sméagol made her feel okay again. I haven't seen my baby smile like that in so long. She's been so sick and miserable. She puts on a brave, happy face, but I can see the fear in her eyes. That was the first time I actually saw pure joy in her eyes since she got sick, and it made me so happy to see my little girl smile again. I may not have much time left with her, but I am going to make it my mission to keep that joy alive, until her last breath."

"Good for you, Madilyn," said Bri, "and I am so sorry to hear about your daughter."

"Wait," said Alyssa, "did you say her name was Meredith?"

"Yes," said Madilyn.

"Meredith Gannon?"

"Yes. Do you know her?"

"No, but my little brother and sister do. She used to go to school with them. They've been asking about her. Maybe we can get them together for a playdate sometime."

Madilyn smiled. "Oh, that would be great. She's been pretty lonely lately."

"Well, doesn't the hospital have a play area for the kids?" asked Rachel.

"Yeah, but she's kind of afraid to go in there, because she's scared to see other kids just as sick as she is."

"Awww," Bri said sadly. "Is it because she's afraid to get attached to someone who might die?"

"I think it's a whole bunch of reasons," said Madilyn. "She's afraid to see other kids suffering just as much or worse than she is. She's afraid she'll get attached to someone, and then, they'll die."

"She sounds like a sweetie-pie with a soft heart."

Madilyn smiled. "She is."

"But, I'm sure it'll make the other kids happy to have a friend like her to play with."

"I know it would, but I don't wanna pressure her." Madilyn sighed heavily. "I just wish she could have friends to play with. I don't want her to lie around being sick and miserable."

"Well, let me know when a good time is," said Alyssa, "and I'll bring my brother and sister by to play."

"Yes," said Sméagol, "and Sméagol come by to play, too."

"And, feel free to bring her here sometime," Bri added.

Madilyn smiled. "You guys are the best. This will mean so much to her."

"And, Sméagol sing to her, too," Sméagol said so sweetly.

"Awwww, Sméagol, you're just the sweetest little thing."

Sméagol smiled warmly, and gave Madilyn a big hug. "Awwwwww."