Shirleen had been trying to find someone that could watch Collins for me while I worked.
Thankfully, when Mrs. Bittersmith had heard why, she had readily agreed to watch Collins at our house. It also helped that she lived just three streets over.
Only when I expected to walk into her room, kiss her forehead and take a long hot shower it was to find Collins with vomit in her bed along with her skin being cool and clammy.
Mrs. Bittersmith had been beside herself as I ran with Collins to the car and drove us to the hospital.
Not only that, but she had followed and had tears in her eyes that she hadn’t heard Collins get sick.
I didn’t blame her. My little girl wouldn’t have said anything.
Leaving Collins’s hospital room in sweats, I leaned against the wall in the elevator and sighed. I hated leaving her here so I could work.
Damn that asshole that took my money and damn Hazel. That fucking bitch.
What I wouldn’t give to put my hands around her neck and squeeze the life out of her. I didn’t mind taking care of Collins. She was mine, after all. But I blamed her for making Collins feel like she never wanted her.
Shirleen had told me with a stern tone that on the nights I worked, she would sit with Collins in her hospital room.
Arriving at Carters to pick up a shift on the floor, I quickly changed out of my sweats and into my uniform. Applied make-up and then walked to the station to get the tables I was working on.
Six hours later, with four numbers in my apron and five hundred dollars in tips, I tossed the numbers in the trash. Walked to the locker room and changed back into my sweats.
Walking into the hospital room, Shirleen looked up and frowned. Softly as to not wake Collins up, she said, “I’m sorry, honey. I wish I could take this nasty disease from her.”
Smiling, I took the chair she had vacated and nodded. “I’d do just about anything.”
Stretching, I settled into sleep with my head on her bed and knew my back would be protesting but I was worn out.
It was a gentle touch on my shoulder that had woken me.
Looking up at the doctor, I noticed he had a small frown on his face.
Looking at Collins, it was to see that she was still sleeping. Glancing at the clock, it was to see that I had been asleep for only fifteen minutes.
Wariness was in my tone when I asked, “What is it, Doc?”
“I’m afraid that on top of her leukemia when Collins got sick last night, it was because her appendix is inflamed. It wasn’t an immediate need to remove her appendix with everything going on, so I consulted her oncologist, and he feels we need to go ahead and remove it. With your permission?”
Sighing, I nodded and asked, “When?”
“They will have the operating room ready in fifteen minutes. A nurse will bring the forms by so you can sign them.”
And with that, he nodded and walked out. I woke Collins then. Wanting her to know what was going on.
“Hey gorgeous girl, wake up for me, Munchkin?”
She opened her little eyes and smiled tiredly at me. “Hey, Mommy.”
“Beautiful. The reason you got sick is that your appendix is inflamed. That’s why you got sick. So, the doctors need to remove it. It doesn’t do anything, but you should feel better once it’s out. Is that okay?”
She nodded and then fell back asleep.
Then, after I signed the forms, they rolled my baby into surgery.
After all, that’s happened over the last week, everything came at once. How much could one person handle before they broke?
The bank? The chemo? The surgery? Leering stares from men?