Danielle grins, her cheeks puffing out. “Nature is my favorite thing to draw.”
I walk over and plant a kiss on Danielle’s cheek, then ruffle the top of her head. “You’ll have to show Rylee your room sometime. I bet you can’t guess who her favorite singer is.”
Her eyes dart from me to Rylee. “You’re a Swiftie?” she asks excitedly.
Rylee grins. “Yep.”
She looks to dad next. “Can we keep her here always?”
We all laugh.
“I don’t know about that, but she’s welcome here anytime,” Dad answers.
I pull out a chair for Rylee to sit, and I take the one beside Danielle. “So, tell me about this good news you were hollering about.”
“Can I tell him, Dad?”
“Go ahead, sweetie,” he says over his shoulder as he pours some juice in a glass. He brings it to the table and sets it in front of Danielle, then takes the seat on her other side.
Danielle’s eyes dance with more life than I’ve seen in a long time.
“I got approved for new lungs.”
I’m speechless for a moment. We’ve been battling the insurance company for almost a year. Danielle’s health has declined dramatically during that time, and they didn’t seem to care. Hopelessness and helplessness have been the two dominant emotions ruling our lives for so long.
I look to Dad. “Is this serious? They approved her?”
“Yes. Apparently, the company recently fired several of its approval board members for not properly investigating all medical claims. They said that Danielle should have been approved months ago.”
“Are you kidding me?” I fist my hands on my thighs in anger. “And they think this is okay? What the hell would have happened had it been too late? What are they going to do to make up for this?”
Dad leans back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. “They’re offering a settlement for people affected. But even if they hadn’t, the most important thing is that Danielle will get on the list to get the lungs she needs.”
“This is unbelievable,” I mutter. I jackknife out of my chair, the legs scraping across the floor. On one hand, I’m happy Danielle will finally get what she needs to hopefully beat this illness. But on the other, it pisses me off that they didn’t catch the neglect before now. How many other people suffered unnecessarily? How many people died because of it? The yearly death rate for emphysema is only five percent, but that’s five percent way too fucking much.
“Zayden, sit down,” Dad commands, his voice both hard and gentle. This hasn’t only affected him. He knows how hard it’s been on me, too.
I retake my seat and blow out a harsh breath, calming my frayed nerves and the anger rushing through me. A warm hand slides across mine, and I glance at Rylee. Her concerned gaze meets mine.
“The whole situation is a mess,” Dad continues, “but what’s important is that it was caught and fixed before it was too late. There’s nothing we can do about the past. We can only look to the future.”
I nod, relaxing my jaw. “Yeah.” I reach over and scoop Danielle out of her chair and pull her onto my lap. She sits sideways, her legs dangling.
“Didn’t I tell you everything was going to be okay?” I ask, letting the rest of my anger melt away.
“I already knew it would be.” She smirks. “I wasn’t worried, you were.”
I tweak her nose. “Nah. I knew you were too stubborn to let your little ol’ lungs keep you down.”
She giggles and throws her arms around my neck. I pull her closer, tightening my grip on her, while silently sending up my thanks to whoever’s listening. My eyes meet Rylee’s over her head. Her smile is soft as she looks from me to Danielle.
I’m glad she’s here. Today has been a damn good day, despite the bullshit that came with it.
Danielle will finally get her lungs.
And I’ve got a girl that’s quickly becoming one of the most important people in my life.
RYLEE