Page 45 of The Wish
Alex looks around, aware he had been too blunt in introducing Kelly. ‘I’d better get going. Dean’s probably left by now.’
‘OK, I’ll take care of this. See you there.’
Alex lingers watching her searching for her wallet in an overcrowded handbag. She looks up triumphantly when she finds it and he smiles a thank you before heading off.
As Alex walks towards the hospital entrance, he looks up at the wards above. Figures walk past windows; some patients and their visitors can be seen on a small balcony outside their rooms. Alex tries to recall if Jesse and Amy’s room has a balcony. Most rooms are brightly lit, he sees a series of windows where only dim lights filter out into the night, and wonders what that ward might be. His gaze continues up to where the brightness of the full moon and stars competes with the lights of the houses and buildings below. He sighs. He used to drive past hospitals and barely register them. Now he feels that powerful sense of all those lives within the building, living through tragedy, pain, loss – and sometimes recovery. It’s overwhelming to him.
Walking past the nurses’ station, Alex gets the thumbs-up from Sandy. He finds a beaming Jesse sitting on her bed, waving his camera at him. Taking the camera, he nods towards the glass door. Sliding from her bed she lets him lead her out onto the balcony from her room.
He positions her at the railing. She tilts her head up. He lies on the ground, framing her with the night sky. Her face is calm, dreamy. She waves to the moon. Twirls. Hugs herself.
Suddenly overcome with exhaustion and emotion, Alex stops shooting and slumps against the wall, transfixed by Jesse, lost in the moment, in herself, it’s as if she could fly away from all the pain and heartache that makes up her short life. Sadness threatens to overwhelm him. Jesse senses he has stopped shooting and stops twirling, turning to Alex with a beaming smile that drowns out the moon and stars. He can’t help but smile back at her.
From inside the room, Kelly watches the beautiful scene playing out on the balcony. She sees Alex slump against the wall and Jesse finally stop and look at him. This is her cue to step outside so Jesse and Alex can end the moment. She helps Jesse back inside where Amy waits for her.
After a few moments Alex comes back into the room. ‘Thank you, Jesse. Now, you get some rest.’
‘You too, Alex. This was one of the best days ever.’
‘Hey Alex, you’re actually pretty OK,’ Amy calls.
‘Thank you, Amy, you’re pretty OK yourself. I’ll see you, girls.’
‘WE’RE NOT GIRLS!’ they yell in unison.
Alex mimes shooting himself in the head.
‘Would you like me to walk you out?’ Kelly quickly says.
‘No thanks, I know the way,’ Alex says, throwing Amy a wink. He turns back, suddenly feeling shy. ‘So, um, thanks for tonight,’ he says.
‘Yeah,’ she says softly. ‘Yeah, it was nice.’
‘I’d better, um . . .’ He points towards the door. ‘Lots of work to get through tonight.’ He colours, feeling the eyes of Jesse, Amy and Kelly on him, looking at him, it seems, with amusement. ‘But we should . . .’ he says helplessly.
‘Yes,’ Kelly says, rescuing him. ‘We should. Let’s chat soon.’
‘Totally,’ Alex replies. He glances at Jesse and Amy who are grinning at him like Cheshire cats. They’re not making this easy. ‘I’ll see you all tomorrow, then.’
‘Bye, Alex!’ the girls chorus, and their laughter follows him out of the ward.
Back in his home office Alex works furiously, downloading photos, sorting them out into the ‘to be used’ and ‘just for fun’ files. He then goes through the beach videos he and Steve made earlier, once again mixing long shots with close-up scenes. Videos and still photos merge and change from one screen to another. He places still photos of Jesse, Mandy and Sam on the beach as he anticipates filming them in the studio, looking at the skyline, the receding tide, manipulating the photos so it seems the family are interacting. He likes what he sees. When a photo of him and Kelly side by side, each casting a sideways look at the other appears, he is shocked. He smiles to himself, knowing this was the work of Amy. A ping on his phone tells him it is midnight and breaks his concentration. It also wakes Max who stands, stretches and wanders over to Alex, knowing it is time for a last trip outside for the night. Placing his head on Alex’s lap he looks up to see Alex concentrating on one photo. A photo of Kelly. Max wags his tail approvingly.
CHAPTER 19
Working in her office, Kelly is disturbed by the department receptionist leaning in the doorway, smiling.
‘What?’ Kelly asks her.
‘Anything you want to tell me?’
Kelly puts her head down pretending to work. ‘About what?’
‘You know what. Last night.’
‘Last night. It was a quick drink, it was nice.’
‘Nice. Just nice. A tuna sandwich is nice.’
