Page 10 of Flamingo Christmas

Jacquie nodded. “I know. She got my promise to help them. You’re the Christmas lady. Would you go with me? You know I’m a klutz when it comes to decorating.”

“Can’t, sorry. Promised Colleen I’d go to dinner with her. She needs to talk about Barb.”

“Better you than me. I’m almost glad I’ll be stuck at Margaret’s then… as much as I dread looking a fool.”

“You’ll be just fine. And if her nephew is the same man in the picture she has on the mantel, and if he’s single, you just might be in for a real treat.”

“Yeah, with my luck? He’s probably married with five kids and a pregnant wife.”

Giggling, Sue stood. “You’re such a Debbie Downer.”She added, “I need to stick with the plan though. I’m worried about Colleen. Barb’s been away a lot. It scares Colleen. She thinks she might be losing her. I know it’s a tough time for her right now. She wants to get pregnant but hesitates because she’s not sure Barb’s all in with the plan.”

“Right. I remember now. She told us they’d chosen a relative to be a sperm donor. And all was in place.”

“Yeah, kind of. But now everything is up in the air.”

“Poor Colleen. As much as neither of us care for Barb, she is Colleen’s choice and we’ve always supported her. I just hate to see her getting hurt.”

Sue thought about her answer before finally spurting it out. “I can’t help thinking a breakup sooner than later could be for the best.”

Jacquie nodded. “You’re so lucky. I’ve gone through boyfriends like a girl changes her earrings. Even Colleen has changed her mind a few times.But you, one teenage crush in high school that petered out followed by a serious boyfriend in college. He immigrates to Scotland, and you’ve been free ever since.Don’t you miss the excitement of being in a romantic relationship?”

“Sure. Of course I do. But I don’t want to be involved in… in flings. You know, sex and partying. I want a true commitment with love.”

“Well, good luck with that, girlfriend. Good luck with that.”

Chapter Nine

Art raced to the hospital with a glow on his face and prayers reverberating in his head.Please, please let my baby wake up.

But it wasn’t to be. By the time he’d arrived, Lisa had settled back into her comatose state and the doctor had left him only optimistic words to brighten his disappointment.

He questioned his mother continuously about how she moved. “Did she speak or make any sounds, Mom?”

“No, no. Her hand just reached as if she searched for something. I gave her the doll you have next to her; told her we were waiting for her, but she just sighed, and her hand dropped.”

“Maybe she was reaching for me.” Art’s guilt almost destroyed him at that moment. “I should have been here.”

“Art Reves. Stop it. You can’t be in this hospital room every second of every day. You mustn’t do this to yourself. She wasn’t awake, honey. But she’s getting closer.”

The doctor chimed in. “It’s really just the first step, Art. Lisa’s beginning to get stronger and will no doubt, in her own time, become more and more alert. You mustn’t be disillusioned. Moving as she did is a good sign.”

Counting the days as they passed, he watched for other movements and wasn’t disappointed. As if Lisa reached for something no one could see, her little fingers would stretch for an infinitesimal moment and then drop back to her side. Not once did she open her eyes.

His parents encouraged him to feel hopeful, but he just couldn’t. Worried sick about her possible demise, over the next while, he continued to lose weight and became like a skeleton of his old healthy self.

Day after day he sat by her bed and read her stories, talked to her, and urged her to wake up and speak to him. He used every bribe he could think of, from her favorite movies to her penchant for chocolate-mint ice cream cones.

Each day, the hospital began decorating for the coming Christmas season, and he humbugged it to himself and everyone who would listen. How could the world celebrate when his Lisa lay there unmoving? He didn’t understand and certainly couldn’t join in the festivities.

One afternoon, a commotion in the hallway startled him, and he made his way to the door to find a woman with a push cart filled with colorfully wrapped gifts approaching the waiting room where they’d erected a large tree.

It was the same female he’d seen in the hospital weeks before, the one who’d caught his attention and had stayed in his thoughts for some time.

Just as she came closer, he saw the wheel of her trolly bend sideways, and most of the presents cascaded to the ground. Comically, the girl cartwheeled, trying to grab as many as she could before they fell and she ended up on her backside instead.

Rushing forward, he tried to stop the accident but ended up tripping on one of the wheels that had broken away, and landing on the floor beside her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t see the ahh… the wheel in time.”

Laughing, still surrounded on the floor by the packages, Sue joked. “Oh, I watch it all the time. It’s a good series.”

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