Page 68 of Loving Lizzy

“Honey if he lives there, I wanna move there too.” They laughed.

Diana arrived and the two women watched the commotion in the waiting room. An older woman attempted to corral the little boy by the hand while she held a baby carrier. She settled the trio into chairs and pulled out books, and puzzles for the little boy, who was around the age of Lizzy’s friends’ kids. Then, she pulled out a bottle and handed it to her mom. A nurse came around the desk to retrieve her. Diana kissed the children and went inside the infusion area.

Upon seeing her friend and Lizzy, she smiled. “You made it, good for you,” Diana directed her comment to Lizzy. “Who does the huge hunk belong to? Barb, have you kept a secret from me?” She winked.

“Me? Ha! He belongs to this one.” Barb motioned with her thumb toward Lizzy.

“Does he have a brother? Holy hotness, he’s something else.” Diana fanned herself.

The nurse settled Diana and asked if they needed anything. When she walked away, her gaze fell to the waiting room.

“Crap, I knew better than to agree to them coming along,” she groaned.

“The other two women turned in the direction where she stared. Diana’s mom bounced the baby on her lap while the little boy refused to sit. Her mom kept saying something to him to get his attention and by the looks of it, she failed.

Michael leaned down and picked up the puzzle from the floor and said something to the child and held up a piece. Now intrigued, the little boy walked in his direction.

“Don’t worry, Michael’s a pediatrician,” Lizzy assured her. “He absolutely adores kids They flock to him everywhere he goes.”

“Geez, I feel bad. I told mom I’d pick her up before I went to the grocery store. She wanted to save me time, because I tire easily. She doesn’t realize how long I’ll be stuck here, and I can’t help her occupy the rascals,” Diana let out an exasperated sigh.

“He’ll help her. He can’t stand to watch anyone in distress. It’s ingrained in his nature to lend a helping hand. He packed us a bag of goodies when I told him I met you two.” Lizzy opened the bag and took out the selection of coloring books and passed her a pack of pencils. “He sent us these.” She thrust them toward her.

“Oh wow, he’s a keeper. He even brought you toys to keep you occupied. Does he have a brother?” she teased.

“He even packed us snacks.” She pulled out individual baggies of fruit, cheese, and crackers. In the very bottom of the bag sat a plastic container. Lizzy opened it to discover a selection of sugar free cookies from Bryanna.

Diana’s eyes grew huge as she pulled out the food. “Bryanna owns the town bakery. She’s experimenting on sugar free cookies. They taste out of this world.” She offered the tray selection to Barb and then Diana.

“I can’t remember the last time I bought cookies for Caleb,” She sadly glanced toward the waiting room. “I’ll save mine for him. He’s such a great kid and loves to help take care of Faith. Not much money in the budget for luxury items when you need diapers and formula.”

Lizzy glanced at Barb, who sent a sympathetic glance in Diana’s direction.

“My aunt used to say, ‘And this too shall pass.’ I never understood what she meant because it always seemed she said it during the most difficult times in my life. As I grew older, I realized when I experienced something awful her words echoed in my ear. I finally knew even bad times pass, Diana. You can’t control cancer or when people walk out of your life. You press on and continue to move forward,” Barb advised.

“The thought is nice, but it doesn’t do me much good when I worry about how I’m putting food on the table. Mom won’t admit it, but she’s getting older, and the kids wear her out. We try to go to the food bank to supplement what my checks won’t cover. She insists on taking the kids in the wagon and pulls it back on the weeks I can’t walk the three blocks.” She continued to stare at her family, her brows creased in worry.

Lizzy pressed her call button and when the nurse came over, Lizzy held the package out to her. “Can you give this to Michael?”

The nurse took the cookies and handed them to him. Michael glanced up as Lizzy pointed to the kids and smiled. He said something to Diana’s mother who turned her gaze over to her daughter. She nodded her head, and the older woman took a cookie. Then Michael patiently held out the selection to the sandy haired little boy. He leaned over and took his time before he finally picking out his treat. He ran to the window and knocked, proudly showing his mom. The three women laughed as she encouraged him to eat it.

“Thank you, you didn’t have to do that. I hope I didn’t make you feel uncomfortable blurting out my entire life story. Cancer seems to make my mouth loose.”

“Don’t worry about it. Sometimes, talking about it helps,” Lizzy assured her. She divided the baggies into threes and passed them out with a package of crackers. She sat back and turned the pages of her book.

“Thank you for the snacks and the other stuff. It’s really kind of you,” Diana softly told her as she fingered the baggies and glanced in the direction of her son.

Lizzy watched her stare longingly in his direction. If she made a guess, Diana planned to save it for her son. “Michael says it’s important to keep our strength up. He packs food for me like he’s feeding an army. Why don’t you put those back in my cooler and share these with me? Then you can take the other bag home with you. I ate a huge breakfast this morning and if I come out of here with full bags of food, I’ll never hear the end of it.”

She peered at the food in front of her. “You don’t mind?” She seemed uncertain.

“Oh yeah. My friends’ husbands are former military, and Michael hangs around them. Which means he’ll act like a drill sergeant thinking I’m not eating enough. You’re doing me a huge favor,” she pleaded.

Diana leaned over and took a carrot stick as she opened her book and the pencils. Lizzy sat back and shaded the pink flower in front of her. When she glanced up and found Barb staring at her, the older woman nodded her approval and gave her a wink. The three women chatted and giggled as Caleb climbed in Michael’s lap. Michael took out his phone and pulled up something to capture the kid’s attention. They played a game and every now and again, Caleb laughed aloud and pointed to the screen. Diana’s mom laughed and talked with Michael. The baby began to fuss, and she stood up and paced the room attempting to calm the distraught little girl.

“Oh no,” She rubbed her tired eyes as she watched her mom. “Faith needs a nap, and I doubt mom will convince her to sleep. She hates to close her eyes. She’s very alert for her age and sometimes I think she fights sleep because she thinks she’ll miss out on something. Do you have any kids?”

“Our son, Conner, passed away from SIDS,” Lizzy said sadly.

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