Talania - a Trip Down Memory Lane... (29 page)

“I love you! I love you! I love you! Now give me that food. There better be fries and a nasty fat hamburger in there. Stop staring at me. Hurry before the nurse comes in and takes it. Shut the damn door behind you too.”

Tristan burst out laughing. “Did she take a breath during that rant?”

“I don’t think she did,” Drake laughs and shakes his head at me.

“I think your Sunshine is back, Drake.”

He laughs. “I think you’re right.”

“Give. Me. My. Damn. Food,” I growl.

Drake shuts the door, chuckling as he walks over to me.

Is that my large Coke, too?”

He takes a big slurp from the straw, handing it to me when he’s finished. “It is now. I’m afraid you would hurt me if I didn’t give it to you.”

I grab the bag out of his hands, quickly snatching out a burger.

“Where are the fries?”

He holds another bag up.

“Give them!” I am hungry here. Why can’t they understand this? “Please,” I whisper, biting my lip and batting my eyelashes at him.

“Dude, she just batted her eyelashes at me over some fries.”

“I saw that,” Tristan chuckles, grabbing a hamburger out of the bag.

“Well, how can I resist that?” He grins, handing over the bag.

“Where are my parents?” I ask, smoothing the wrapper from my burger out and laying my fries on it.

“Uh.” Tristan and Drake look at each other.

“Well?”

Tristan walks over to me and sits on the edge of my bed. “Your mom and dad are getting a divorce. When they started weaning you from the coma, your father went to wrap things up and move into the Laguna house. He knows that you are awake, and he’ll be back in a few hours.”

A divorce? Hmmm…why doesn’t that surprise me?

“That really doesn’t shock me.” I shrug. Right now, my burger is more important. They stare at me while I take my first bite of what tastes like heaven.

“Mmm,” I groan in ecstasy!

Dang, why the hell are they staring at me?

“What’s wrong?” I ask while chewing. It’s sexy, I know, but who cares? I haven’t had real food in forever.

“You’re taking the divorce news well. I didn’t want to tell you,” Tristan whispers.

“Well, the woman did awful things. My dad may be a workaholic, but he isn’t mean and he won’t stand for malicious people.”

“Yeah,” Tristan agrees.

We stay quiet and eat in silence. In two weeks, I will be a mother and my battle with cancer will begin again.

Our baby boy is healthy! He ended up being only three and a half weeks early. Our miracle is absolutely perfect. Tristan Charles Monroe Jr. was delivered on June 11, 2012 at 11:36 a.m., weighing in at 5 pounds 11 ounces. We have been home for almost three weeks and today is Evelyn’s twenty-first birthday. Instead of celebrating like a normal twenty-one year old, she’s heading out for chemo.

“Tristan, I’m scared.”

I look away from the surgeons who are about to deliver our son.

“You are Evelyn Beaumont. You are 20 years old and have been battling cancer for nearly five years. You have lost six years of your memories and have regained only what I have been able to give back you. Children weren’t a possibility for you; it was very unlikely after what your body has experienced. And yet, here you are with full-blown Leukemia about to deliver our son. You are Evelyn Beaumont and you can do anything.”

The nurses sigh at my speech, causing Evelyn to giggle.

“Thanks babe. That was just what I needed to hear.”

“Anytime babe.” I grin.

“You two ready?”

I nod and Evelyn whispers a shaky, but happy, “Yes.”

I watch Evelyn while they cut her open. My mother warned me I might not want to watch that part. She knows how I feel about Evelyn and blood. Let me just say, not a big fan here. It feels like hours pass until we hear a small wail. I snap my head in that direction to see my son is being pulled out of Ev. The nurses make quick work with him.

“Evelyn, you did amazing. How are you feeling?”

She smiles up at Doctor Z, who attended the delivery on her request.

“I’m doing great. Doc, how’s my son?”

“He looks good Evelyn. They will let you hold him in just a minute. He looks big enough and healthy enough.”

“Mr. Monroe would you like to cut the cord?” asks a nurse.

I gulp and release Evelyn’s hand and slowly walk over to our miracle. He is so perfect. I’m a father! Tears stream down my face as I cut the cord quickly. The nurse takes him away to a warming station to get his weight and measurements. I frown as I watch him go and walk back over to take Evelyn’s hand.

We were warned it would be a few minutes before we could hold him, but damn if I don’t feel like rushing over there and picking up my son.

“How are her vitals?” I have to know. She has been through so much and I don’t need another mishap when it comes to my infinity.

“She’s doing great actually.”

“Excuse me! I’m right here. Just because I can’t move doesn’t mean I can’t hear!”

We laugh. That is
so
my crazy-ass beautiful girl.

“Evelyn, would you like for Tristan to hold your son so you can see him?”

The nurse walks over with baby Tristan wrapped tightly in a bundle.

“His vitals are good and his lungs are strong. There are a few more tests that we need to do, so only a few minutes, okay?”

Evelyn nods, wiping tears from her eyes. I have never seen her speechless.

The nurse hands me our son and he is so light and fragile. I move so slowly that Evelyn starts laughing.

“Tristan, hurry up and bring him to me.”

I laugh, holding him up by her face. I wish she could hold him, but she’s completely paralyzed and strapped down. This is just a precaution in case of an emergency. At least she can’t feel anything because of all the drugs pumping through her.

“Tristan, the video camera is on, right? You didn’t forget; please tell me you didn’t forget.”

I look behind her head to see the light on the camera blinking.

“It’s still on baby; it got everything.”

She sighs as tears roll down her face.

“He’s perfect,” she chokes
.
“He looks just like you,” she whispers.

I look at our son. I think he looks like Evelyn, but I am not going to start a war she would win.

She looks from our son and into my eyes.

“To infinity,” she whispers.

“To infinity babe,” I whisper back.

“Tristan!” she yells.

“Shush, the baby is sleeping,” I scold her.

She walks slowly towards me. The cancer and chemo have taken a toll on her body, and I pray every day that this Leukemia will be gone soon.

“How are you feeling?”

She sighs. “Not going to lie. I just want to scratch the hell out of this incision. It itches so damn bad babe.”

That is not what I was asking about and she damn well knows it.

“Evelyn Marie Beaumont,” I growl.

She throws her arms up and winces, forgetting about the staples in her stomach.

“Ouch! Okay, I feel like crap. Tristan, I want to tell them to start radiation soon. We have one baby. We got our miracle. It’s time I go back.”

She is right. The faster she fights this off the faster we can live our lives without worry. Well, we will worry about remission relapsing, but at least that is a different kind of worry.

“Is that what you really want to do?”

She bites her lip. I know she wants us to have our other two kids. With just chemotherapy, it lessens the chances. Adding radiation in with the chemo takes the chances to all but none. She has been through this already. Tristan Charles Jr. is honestly a miracle. But it is not bad to want more miracles, right?

“I think it is babe. I mean, I want to get healthy, and I am not just fighting for me anymore. I am fighting for the baby and for you too. I need to beat this.”

“All right baby.” I wrap her in my arms gently.

“What time is mom coming?”

I grin because she calls my mom hers.

“She’s not. Drake is going with you today. He has a crush on one of the patients getting chemo. He’s too shy though, so he probably won’t say anything.”

She pulls back smiling. She loves happy stories for girls like her. ‘Girls losing hope because of losing hair’ is how she always phrases it.

“Which one?”

“Selena,” I state.

“She has Leukemia like me. She is very pretty and even sweeter. She told me she is from South America. I’m kind of jealous of her skin tone.”

I laugh because Evelyn has a beautiful complexion. She is not pale and she knows it.

“Don’t even say it. I already know.”

“Good,” I whisper.

“I’m gonna go kiss our beautiful baby boy goodbye so I can get this over with.”

I let her pull away and I immediately miss her touch. So much has happened in the last year. I am such a lucky bastard.