Page 75 of The Wish
He smiles as he walks back to his bike parked at the bottom of the drive, pausing by the woman.
‘Excuse me. Are you a friend of the Morgans?’ she asks.
‘Yeah, kind of, I’m a friend of Jesse.’
‘Are you Alex?’
Alex stops walking and faces the woman.
‘Yes, how did you know my name?’
‘I help look after Sam; he told me about you. Alex, Mandy has taken Jesse back to the hospital.’
‘What? No, Kelly would’ve called me—’
‘They only just left. Anyway, I’ve got to pick Sam up from a play date.’
Without another word, Alex jumps on his bike, slams on his helmet, and takes off – missing the neighbour’s call: ‘Drive carefully.’
Alex runs from the lift into the ward and heads towards Jesse’s room. Sandy is walking in the opposite direction, sees him and raises her hand for him to stop. Taking him by the hand she attempts to lead him away as his eyes remain glued to the closed door into Jesse and Amy’s room. Sandy tries again to coax him away gently, by pulling on his arm in a ‘follow me’ motion. Shrugging free Alex freezes, still staring at the door. Neither sees Dean approaching from behind.
‘What the hell are you doing here?’ he demands of Alex.
Dean grabs Alex by the jacket, propelling him into a nearby wall. Visitors observing the showdown gasp and pull small children close to them. Sandy hears a nurse call out to get security here now. Sandy calls back to the nurse, ‘No, we can deal with this.’
Turning around, she sees Dean still has hold of Alex’s jacket with one hand, his other arm forced up under his chin.
‘I asked you, what the hell are you doing here?’
Alex tries to shrug himself free, but he’s holding his helmet in one hand which hinders his struggle – and he’s also trying very hard not to get angry and use force.
‘I have to see Jesse; I’ve got to tell her . . .’ Alex tries to stay calm and steady.
‘I’ve told you to stay away from my daughter.’
Dean looks around at the commotion he has caused, at the concerned looks from nearby staff, visitors and children who cling close to their parents. Sandy gently places her hand on Dean’s shoulder, noticing he is tightening his grip on Alex.
‘It’s all right, Dean; I’ll take care of Alex.’
Dean slowly releases his grip on Alex but doesn’t step away. He brings his face closer to Alex’s, whispering in a threatening voice.
‘Do you know what it’s like to be told you’re going to lose the single greatest joy in your life? Can you possibly have any idea?’
Alex looks down. He can’t tell Dean he does know what it’s like to lose the most important person in his life, the pain of being told his mother had died stabs at his heart. He can no longer look Dean in the eye, his shoulders drop. Defeated. Sandy indicates to a nearby nurse to take Dean away. Face red with a mixture of shame and rage, Dean allows himself to be led off.
Sandy takes Alex gently by the arm, and he allows her to lead him down the corridor.
‘I’ve got to see her, you don’t understand,’ he mutters.
As Sandy guides him past the nurses’ station, she asks the receptionist to find Kelly and send her to her office.
In her office, typing up a report on her computer, Kelly answers the ringing phone. The person on the other end is still talking when Kelly hangs up and runs from the room.
It takes all her effort to not run through the hospital, aware that a running person can signify an emergency and cause panic in others. Kelly pauses briefly by the bank of lifts. None are open, waiting for her, so she hurries to the stairwell and runs up the six flights, bursting through the door onto level 6, unaware of the looks she receives from people around as she continues hurrying to the doors that enter the ward. Forcing herself to slow down, trying to catch her breath, she walks quickly through the public area of the ward, barely acknowledging the staff who greet her. She pauses outside Sandy’s office, slowing her breathing before turning the door handle and walking in.
Alex stops his pacing as the door opens and Kelly enters, shutting the door behind her. They each take a tentative step forward, unsure of their boundaries, aware of the growingfeelings between them, fed by the long night spent with Steve and his friends working to make Jesse’s wish come true.
‘Why is she back here?’ Alex blurts.
