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"Time to eat, kiddo," Chris said, forcing a cheerfulness he didn't feel into his voice.
He sat the small tray on the dresser, then gently propped eight-year old Terri up so she was sitting, resting against a couple of pillows behind her back.
"I'm not hungry."
The softly spoken words were a familiar refrain, something he and his parents had heard several times a day since her chemo treatments started again.
"I don't blame you. Mom's chicken soup kind of sucks but she said if I could get you to eat half of what's in the bowl, four crackers, and most of the pudding, I could go rent a movie for us." He named one of their favorites—her favorite actually because he was too old for kiddie stuff—but if it meant getting some food down her, he'd watch it a hundred times.
Her lips turned down in a frown, her blue eyes moved from him to the tray he laid across her lap. She was torn, weighing throwing her lunch up—or at the very least, feeling queasy for the next couple of hours—against watching a beloved cartoon.
"You remember how we eat an elephant, right?" he teased, grinning when she giggled. He reached out and brushed dark hair away from her pale, too thin face.
"One bite at a time?"
"That's right. This-" he said, pointing at the tray, "is the elephant. This-" He held up a spoonful of soup, "is the first bite. Are we ready?"
He smile dimmed a little but after a moment, she nodded, and he spent the next half hour distracting her with all of the amusing stories he could remember about his friends, their neighbors, and people he'd seen around town. She gagged with almost every bite but until he heard 'the noise,' a low sound somewhere between her stomach and the back of her throat, the one that said one more bite was going to be one too many, he kept trying to get her to eat a little more.
He'd done it the first time the cancer invaded her tiny body at all of three years old. In fact, no one else had been able to get more food down her than him. It had been the same this time, after she'd lost half of the lower part of her leg.
Whatever it took though, he'd do. He wasn't going to lose his sister. That just wasn't going to happen. Not if he had anything to do with it.
If he could get her to eat, get her to stay positive and focused on a happy future, even though she was scared right now, he'd give up everything else—for as long as it took. He'd watch every cartoon ever made. He'd sing every song she loved. He'd read stories to her until he was hoarse. Nothing else mattered as long as she was okay in the end.
~~~~
BECAUSE SHE'D HAD AN altercation with a patient who annoyed her, Mary's day pass for Christmas had been revoked. So, since she couldn't come to the party, they brought the party, including supper, a small tree, and gifts to her. Ed and Jon paid monthly fees that bordered on robbery to make sure she had a private room and as long as they didn't bring sharp objects in, the staff allowed them to bring in pretty much whatever they wanted. In fact, they encouraged familial interaction for all of their patients which was one of the reasons they'd decided on this particular long-term care facility.
As violent incidents continued to decrease, her doctors were cautiously optimistic. Though she'd been here nearly five years, eventually, they promised, she'd be ready to move to an off-site assisted living home. It was a day Ed longed for. If she could just stop letting other patients like Toby, the guy who'd tried to strangle him a few years ago, get to her.
Still, she'd reached a place he'd never dreamed he'd see. Every time Ed watched Mary cradling her infant nephew, tears burned his eyes and a lump the size of Alaska lodged in his throat. From a crazed, drug addicted girl who wanted nothing more than to kill him to a doting aunt...
Yeah. Anyone who didn't believe in miracles needed witness her sitting in the rocker he'd bought her last summer, holding Nicky like he was a fragile piece of glass as she hummed Silent Night so softly he could barely hear her.
He watched his wife and youngest daughter as they watched her and noted their eyes were pretty bright. Even Jon seemed affected by the innocent beauty of a woman and a baby on this special Christmas day. Except his way of being touched was to clench his teeth and stare out window covered with thick black chain link screen.
Eventually, Mary started getting restless. She was usually okay with company for two, sometimes three hours but four... Well that was a little more than she wanted to deal with. Reluctantly, she handed Nicky back to her sister while he, Jenna, and Jon started packing everything up.
It was always hard to leave her, especially on holidays, but Ed knew it was for the best. At least for the time being. It helped that she was close enough to visit a few times a week and as he stood last in line to tell her goodbye, he reminded himself he'd see her again on Wednesday.
Mary didn't always let him hug her but today, she actually wrapped her arms around his shoulders before he could even make an attempt to touch her. Another lump formed in his throat and he had to blink hard before she caught him and started teasing him about being a wimp.
"Thanks for coming," she said cheerfully, pressing her lips against his cheek.
"Merry Christmas, sweetheart. I love you so much." After a silence that stretched for what felt like forever, she said the words he hadn't heard in more than twenty years.
"I love you too, Daddy," Mary whispered. "Merry Christmas."
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THANKS FOR TAKING THE time to read Back to the Beginning. If you enjoyed the story, would you consider taking a moment to leave a short review at the store where you bought it? I love to hear what readers think of my books. And honestly, word-of-mouth—via reviews—helps others in deciding whether to give books by indie authors like me a chance.
Thanks again,
Kristy