She was strapped to a hospital bed. Stoney’s eyes were swollen and her heart was destroyed. She couldn’t even piece together what she had done. All she could remember was her trying to get close to her mother. If she were honest with her intentions, she didn’t have any plans, good or bad. What she knew was that she wanted to get close enough to her mother. Just enough to smell her. Maybe even hold her.
A knock at the door halted her sorrow.
“Come in,” Stoney said.
“Stoney,” Vicky cried out as she rushed to her young friend’s bedside. “Oh my goodness. Are you all right?” she asked, walking closer to a bandaged and IV-filled Stoney.
Embarrassed by her presence and the way she was sure she looked handcuffed to the bed, Stoney turned her head away from Vicky, but couldn’t avoid Mike, who had also walked into the room.
“Stoney. Stoney, are you okay?” Mike asked the same question as Vicky.
No longer able to shut them out or hide away from them, Stoney released her cries in front of the two who had shown they wanted more than anything to just be her friend. She didn’t even know how they were aware of the entire incident, but figured Keithe may have been behind the information given.
“We are here for you, Stoney. The nurse said you are dehydrated and malnourished. Your iron is very low.” Vicky tried to hide her heartfelt cry. “I’m not going anywhere until you are better.”
“But…” Stoney wanted to share more of herself. No doubt, she knew her friends would hear how bad of a person she was. Before then she wanted to share her real predicament, and her real purpose from the very beginning. “They are taking me to jail,” she cried.
“I know.” Vicky looked up at Mike. “We know everything. No matter what, we are still here. No matter what.”
“Just like we were in the beginning. We should have never allowed you to get so far away from us,” Mike interjected. “So far from God.”
Closing her eyes, Stoney wanted and needed to get her breakthrough. She was no doubt physically weak, but she was tired of being mentally and emotionally weak as well.
“See, my…my grandmother raised me by herself. But most of the time it seemed as if I raised her.” Stoney shook her head. “She had schizophrenia. I didn’t know it at first, when I was little.” She looked between her friends, wanting to know if they were taking in her shared information.
“The most I know is that my mom dropped me off. Didn’t want anything to do with me. I don’t know who my daddy is and I don’t know what I’m going to do in this world now.” Stoney hollered a weak cry, rambling all of her woes together.
“You don’t have to think or talk about that right now, Stoney,” Vicky said.
“Yes, I do.” Stoney was too weak to raise her head from the white, covered pillow. “I do because it hurts so bad not to know. All I wanted was to talk to her, but I couldn’t. When I saw her, I couldn’t say anything. I wanted to hug her, but I scared her. I…” Stoney broke down, thinking about the opportunity she had made for herself and the way it had ended.
“It’s okay, Stoney.” Mike patted her on her right shoulder and rubbed her hand. Vicky held her left hand and rubbed the top of it in a circular motion. “It will work itself out.”
The medication in her intravenous tube started to take effect. Wanting to struggle and plea about all that had taken place, with her eyes becoming heavy all Stoney could do was shake her head back and forth.
Mike and Vicky joined hands as Stoney’s eyes appeared heavier than her will for them to remain open. Speaking life over their friend, their sister, the two went before the Lord on Stoney’s behalf, asking him to decree healing in her body, in her mind, and in her heart. Virtuous living and thinking was what they asked of the Lord. Purpose and patience for the young woman to be able to ascend into womanhood without any regret, any turmoil, and any distorted view of what the Lord had in store for her.