Impossibly Forever: Two Books in One (Impossibly Duology) (14 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Moya

  
When we got back to school
, I told Vanessa everything that happened, why
my dad was at my house after all this time. By the end of the story she was
flabbergasted, and just as upset with my momma as I was. 

  
Vanessa shook her head in disbelief. “Dang, I can’t believe Ms. Marie blocked
your dad outta your life. That was straight up wrong.”

  
She dropped down on the bed beside me and rubbed my back. “I’m sorry girl. That
must have been really tough to find out. Then your dad was suddenly in front of
you…wow.”

  
I rested my head on her shoulder and we sat quietly until my cell phone
vibrated.

  
“You wanna get that?” she asked.

  
I sucked my teeth and fell back on the bed. “It’s probably Branden calling me
again. I don’t want to talk to him.”

  
Vanessa rose in dismay. “What? What happened with him? You guys are having a
lover’s quarrel already?”

  
I shook my head. “Trust me, it’s bigger than that. Branden and I are through, and
I don’t ever want to speak to him again.”

  
“Uh-Oh, you want to tell me what happened with him?” she asked. “It’s probably
another misunderstanding, girl—”

  
I cut her off, sitting up again, “How is ‘I can’t love you’ a
misunderstanding?”

  
Vanessa’s jaw dropped. “He said that? You know what, let me talk to him. I’m
answering the phone.”

  
She hurried to my desk and I sprang from the bed and tugged on her arm.
“Vanessa, leave it alone. I told you it’s over. Don’t answer his call.”

  
“Well, then, why is he still calling? I want to find out for myself what’s up.”
She broke away from my grasp and snatched up the phone from my desk before I
could reach it.

  
Vanessa checked the screen before answering. “Oh, so it really is him.” She
prepared herself to cuss him, resting her weight on one leg and pursing her
lips. “Branden, you better have a good reason for saying that…” Her voice
trailed and her forehead creased. “Who’s this?”

  
I moved closer and mouthed, “What is it?”

  
Vanessa held up her index finger to signal for me to give her a sec. While I
waited, I noticed her expression changed between appalled, raised brows, to a
creased forehead.

  
The longer she was on the phone, the more nervous it made me.

  
Then suddenly, Vanessa’s hand slowly moved from her face, her eyes gazed down
at the carpet. She was utterly stunned.

  
“What’s wrong?” I asked, touching her arm lightly.

  
Vanessa looked up at me, frightened. “Some woman said she’s Branden’s Mom.” She
sounded unlike my best friend. Not like the bubbly girl I was used to.

  
“Why is Branden’s Mom calling me?” I asked in a curious voice, taking the phone
from her hand. Mrs. McCarthy had already hung up.

  
Vanessa grabbed my car keys from the desk. “We have to go, girl, now!”

  
She pulled me towards the door.

  
I slowed her down and asked, “What happened? What did she say?”

  
Vanessa opened the door and guided me outside into the hallway. “Branden’s at
St. Joseph’s Medical Center. She said he’s going to have surgery tonight. You
have to hurry, Moya.”

  
I couldn’t make a sound. I couldn’t breathe. I let Vanessa take my hand as I
ran behind her to my car. It was a good thing she was driving because I was
downright beside myself with worry.    

  
Why did Branden need to have surgery?

  
The news shook me. As much as I was angry at him for hurting me, I wanted
Branden to be okay.

  
I found myself crying in the car, hoping it wasn’t anything serious. Hoping I’d
get to see him again.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Moya

  
When Vanessa and I got to St. Joseph’s Medical Center
, I hurried over to
the nurse at the reception area and asked for Branden’s room. She politely said
since I wasn’t family, she couldn’t explain what was going on. 

  
I took my cell phone out and dialed Branden’s number. His mother answered and
said she’d meet me in the lobby.

  
“Take it easy, girl. Let’s relax before you have a heart attack, okay.” Vanessa
rubbed my hands and tried to calm me down. My nerves couldn’t settle.

  
I nearly flew out of my skin as Mrs. McCarthy rushed down the hallway. “Come
with me.” She took my hand and led me back the way she came. Vanessa stayed
behind.

  
I followed Mrs. McCarthy without asking questions, assuming I’d get answers
when I see Branden.

  
Finally, we got to a room with the sign ‘OR’ above the doors. A huge knot
formed in my throat as Mrs. McCarthy pushed the door open and ushered me
inside.

  
There, in the middle of the pale green room, was Branden. I slapped my hands
over my mouth to hide my gasp at the sight of him. He looked so vulnerable, so
fragile, as he lay unconscious in the bed—an IV attached to his hand and a
heart monitor, beeping in its high-pitched, ominous way, over his bed.

  
“What’s going on?” I muffled, turning back to Mrs. McCarthy at the door.

  
She tilted her head, choking back tears as she said, “I wish he’d told you
sooner, dear. I hope you understand he had his reasons.”

  
Mrs. McCarthy walked over to Branden and rested her hand on top of his head,
fighting hard to appear strong for him. His eyes flickered as he came to. Then
she murmured, “Moya’s here,” glancing my way.

  
Elated, Branden eased up faintly and smiled at me. I slowly walked over to his
side. “Are you okay?”

  
He raised his hand and wiped my wet cheek.

  
“I’ll leave you two alone,” Mrs. McCarthy said, as she walked out of the room.
Her body was visibly drenched in pain. Was it that bad?

  
Branden pointed me toward a chair and I brought it close to the bed and sat
down. “Tell me what’s going on, Branden? How come you’re in the hospital?” I
sobbed.

  
He exhaled, “Moya, I lied.”

  
I shook my head. “Lied about what?”

  
Branden turned on his side and took my hand into his. “I love you. I love you
so much, Moya.”

  
His confession didn’t surprise me. I already knew. I was only disappointed he’d
pretended not to love me when he clearly did. I had to know why. “Tell me why
you lied and hurt me like that then?”

  
He closed his eyes and took a long breath before continuing, “I have Aortic
Dissection. It’s actually my second time around, and I have to do surgery
tonight for a chance to put an end to the condition. I thought, me being so
sick, I would be a burden to you. I thought you deserved better.”

  
Shaking my head, I refuted, “You could never be a burden to me just because
you’re sick.” But I didn’t understand his condition. “Aortic Dis…”

  
He broke it down, “It means there’s a tearing of the inner layer of the aorta
wall, and blood is starting to leak into the wall, causing a separation of the
inner and outer layers. That’s why I get all these aches in my chest. The first
time it happened, was back in my senior year of high school. That’s why I had
to stop playing hockey. I did surgery a year ago to fix it but it won’t go
away.”

  
The whole thing was new to my ears. It sounded really serious, though,
especially since he had to do surgery. Right then I wasn’t mad at Branden
anymore. I wanted him to be okay. “So, this second surgery, it’ll make it all
better, right?”

  
Branden turned his head away from my eyes. “They said there’s a chance it might
not.”

  
A sudden pain twisted my heart. I began to whimper. “What does that mean?”

  
He shook his head and stroked my cheek. “Don’t think about that. Just believe
I’ll be okay.”

  
I nodded and lowered my face on the bed, trying to hide my tears. Branden
combed his fingers through my curls and consoled me. “You know, I was thinking
I’d really like to meet your momma some time. To meet the woman who raised such
a wonderful girl.”

  
My head shot up when I heard him mention Momma, and I cried even more. I
couldn’t tell him how mad I was at her then, that she wasn’t who I thought she
was. Instead, I stayed by Branden’s side until Mrs. McCarthy entered the room
again, a white haired doctor behind her.

  
She walked over to us and touched me on my back. “It’s time.”

  
I began to heave, glancing back at Branden and securely gripping his hand. “No,
wait. I have to stay with him,” I cried.

  
Out of nowhere, strong hands clutched my arms, carrying me out of the room and
away from Branden. I looked behind once more to stare into his eyes for what
could be the last time. He gazed back at me with those adorable blues that
captured my soul, mouthing, “I love you.”

  
I whispered back, “I love you.” Then I was left outside with Mrs. McCarthy as
the nurse went into the room, closing the door behind her.

  
Afterwards, I walked back to Vanessa in the waiting room. She threw her arms
around me as I sat down and cried.

  
Moments later, Mrs. McCarthy joined us. Her husband and Ashton also entered the
room, sitting down across from Vanessa and
I
.

  
“The whole time he was sick,” I mumbled to myself. “From the very moment we
met. I wish we had more time, done more things together. It feels like we’d
only just begun.”

  
Vanessa rubbed my back. “That nurse in the lobby finally told me what was going
on. After the surgery I’m sure
it’s
gonna be all
right, Moya.”

  
I rested my head on her shoulder and thought back to the first time I saw
Branden in Business Law, how he’d stared at me, and how persistent he was,
trying to win me over. Gosh, I’d been so headstrong, even when I saw how
different he was. That he genuinely cared about me.

  
“Moya,” The baritone voice pulled me from my thoughts.

  
Glancing up, I saw my father and mother. I looked over at Vanessa, confused.
She had a guilty expression on her face.

  
Holding her hand up in the air, she admitted, “I called them. Please don’t be
mad but you could use their support right now.”

  
As angry as I was at them both, I didn’t have the energy to argue. I stayed
silent as my parents sat down next to me. Honestly, I wanted to rush into my
momma’s arms the moment I saw her face. But what she’d done was still fresh on
my mind amidst my worrying about Branden.

  
“I’m so sorry, baby.” She gently reached for my hands. “No matter how angry you
are with your father,” she paused, her eyes watering as guilt quivered at the
corners of her mouth. “No matter how angry you are with me, please let us stay
with you through this.”

  
I hesitantly allowed Momma to clasp my hands into hers, not having any vitality
to chase her away. My father gave me a heartening smile when I looked over at
him briefly. Good thing he kept his distance because I wasn’t sure how I’d
react if he’d tried to console me as well.

  
The waiting was driving me insane. I peered up at the clock at every passing
minute—its loud ticking filled the quiet room. I heard everything from Mr.
McCarthy’s worried sighs, Mrs. McCarthy’s lowly whimpers, to the sound of
Vanessa’s long fingernails as she scratched them nervously on her jeans.

  
When two hours passed and still no word of how Branden was doing, I wanted to
scream. But gazing over at Mrs. McCarthy, I felt like it wasn’t my place to
complain. Neither she nor Mr. McCarthy could stay seated. He paced the area,
fists clenched, and a painful expression on his face. Ashton, though, was
nowhere in sight. He had left to get something for his mother to drink more
than ten minutes ago and he still hadn’t returned.

  
I got up from the seat. Vanessa touched my elbow. “What’s wrong, Moya? You need
something?”

  
I bobbed my head. “I’m okay, going to get some air.”

  
I walked down the passage towards the exit. As suspected, Ashton was outside
the hospital, sitting sluggishly on one of the benches.

  
He looked over when he heard footsteps.
“Moya?”

  
I sat down next to him, dully. “You should be inside, with your family.”

  
Ashton shook his head. “I can’t. I don’t like the look on their faces.” He sank
back on the bench, struggling to hold back tears.

  
“It’s okay. Truth is
,
I was looking for a reason to
come out here, too. I don’t know if I can stay in that room. Everybody looks so
down, like they don’t think he’s going to make it. He will…” I shivered.

  
Looking Ashton in the eye, I pleaded, “Please tell me Branden is going to be
all right. Please?”

  
Ashton squeezed my hands. “He’ll be fine. My brother is a fighter, and I can
tell he really cares about you.” He feigned a smile. “I’m glad you made him
want to hang on. I don’t think he would have taken the risk if it weren’t for
you, Moya.”

  
A panic filled voiced bellowed my name, “Moya!
Hurry!”
Vanessa shouted.

  
Ashton and I rushed back inside behind her, where Doctor Henderson was talking
to Mr. and Mrs. McCarthy. They seemed overjoyed.

  
“What happened? Did the surgery go well?” Ashton asked as we drew closer.

  
I clasped my hands together prayerfully and brought them to my mouth, hoping it
was really good news.

  
Mrs. McCarthy spun and threw her arms around him. “Oh, Ash, the surgery went
well. He’s going to be all right. Branden’s going to be okay.”

  
Vanessa turned me to face her and she hugged me cheerfully. “Girl, you hear?
He’s gonna be all right.”

  
I cried in her arms, ecstatic.

  
Momma walked over and rested a hand on my shoulder. I pulled away from Vanessa
and stared at her and my father.

  
“I’m happy your friend’s gonna be all right, baby girl,” he said, tapping my
elbow with caution.

  
Putting the anger aside, only for this moment, I dove into his parted arms. He
wrapped them around me tightly as I whispered over and over, “Daddy, it’s going
to be okay.”