Page 38 of Catching Dreams

“Hey, man,” I said and clasped Mack on the shoulder.

“Thank you for coming so quickly!” Mack smiled at me and tapped Nico on the arm. He then pointed at me. “Stone is here.” He said the words slowly and with exaggerated movements.

Nico looked confused and held his ears. He looked over at me and grinned. “STONE!” he yelled loudly and jumped into my arms.

“Hey, buddy,” I said without thinking since I knew he couldn’t hear me. “How is he? He looks good, other than the hearing thing.”

“The doctors are amazed at how well he is doing. The hearing seems to be the only thing affected by hitting his head. One doctor suggested trying surgery to see if it could fix the issues, but after looking at the scans closer, the neurosurgeon said it could potentially do more harm and probably wouldn’t restore his hearing.”

“Not worth the risk,” I said as Nico was blabbing to me about something with a loud, monotone voice. I could tell he was trying to tell me what he was building with LEGO blocks, but it was hard to understand him.

“The occupational therapist said he doesn’t realize how loud he is because he can’t hear himself talking. She did say to keep encouraging him to talk, though.”

“Wow, you’ve had a busy morning with doctors and therapists!”

“I know. Everyone has been so helpful, though. Later this afternoon, a speech and language therapist and a sign language specialist will also be coming by. I’m going to get a crash course in sign language since that is how I will communicate with him. I’ve already been reading about it, and it seems like Nico will learn it a lot faster than I will.”

“I want to learn, too. I want to be able to communicate with my buddy.”

“I would love that, man. Thank you.”

Nico climbed out of my arms but grabbed my hand and led me to the tray holding his LEGO creation. I sat in one of the hospital chairs next to Mack and began building with both of them.

“I hate to ask, but have you figured out anything about Ashleigh’s funeral?”

Mack sighed. “I talked to Ash’s mom just before you got here actually. They want to have it in her hometown in Kentucky. Luckily, it’s not too far.”

“Yeah, that’s good. When were they thinking?”

“They are having it in two days. The doctor said Nico should be okay to travel, but he’s not going to understand it at all. But I want him there. I want you and guys there, too, if possible.”

“Of course, man. We’ll all be there. I don’t have to report back to the Lightning until the day after that.”

Mack nodded. “Campbell called, and he had the Tiger game against the Ducks postponed so they could all come. Sebastian Campbell is a class act. They will play a doubleheader the next time they meet up.”

“That’s good. What are you going to do?” I placed a few more LEGO bricks in a stack to make a wall. Nico nodded in approval and built his own wall near mine. He had a little LEGO guy peeking his head around the wall, and I had to chuckle. It was so great seeing this little boy awake and playing again.

“Well, I don’t know yet. There isn’t much in the way of speech pathologists and schools for the deaf in a tiny town like Trinity Falls.”

I hadn’t thought about that. “You’re not going to give up coaching, are you?”

Mack was about to say something as he put a LEGO brick on top of the wall I had been building.

“NO!” Nico yelled. He then pointed, and Mack put the LEGO piece where he thought Nico was wanting him to. Nico shook his head and kept saying, “No.”

“This is the worst, most heartbreaking part,” Mack said as he tried several different places to put the small block. “I can’t communicate with him.”

“That really sucks. Hopefully, soon, you’ll both learn sign language and will be able to talk.”

“Want Mommy!” Nico yelled. “Mommy!”

I saw tears well up in Nico’s eyes and in Mack’s eyes as well. “He keeps asking for Mommy, and it breaks my heart to shake my head. I can’t make him understand that she risked her life for him. That she loved him more than anything.”

“Someday, you’ll be able to tell him,” I said as I wiped my own eyes. I reached in the bag I had brought with me and grabbed the teddy bear that Mack had specifically asked me to find. Luckily, I had been able to find the well-loved brown bear with a red bow tie. The minute Nico saw it, his eyes got wide, and he reached for the stuffed animal. I handed it to him, and he wrapped his small arms tightly around it and cuddled it against his chest.

“Thank goodness you were able to find Bear Bear.” Mack climbed in the hospital bed and pulled Nico and Bear Bear into his arms. Nico immediately cuddled against his side and put his thumb into his mouth. His little eyes closed, and Mack kissed the top of his head.

“I’ll let you guys get some rest. If you need anything for the funeral, let me know. If not, I'll see you in a couple days.”

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