Chapter 2: New friend
I laugh at the memory a little, but I still feel even now the feeling of inevitable change that I had had back then. His essence had captured me. I hadn't been able to deny it back then and I still can't. Can't deny and can't explain.
At first I had thought that Mr. Zetterstrom had me reacting in such a strong way. He had looked a little like my Tom … and it had been years since I had even acknowledged the presence of a man. Keith had stood right behind his father, partially shielded by him, and I have to admit at first I didn't really notice him. Surreptiously I had observed father and son for a moment before going out to greet them. I began to notice Keith, the 'I-don't-give-a-sh*t-about-your-pity'-look in his eyes and the hunched shoulders. My heart went out to him as to every other child and I sternly told myself to ignore the boy's father and concentrate on the boy and making him feel welcome and as comfortable as possible in the situation.
The moment I had greeted Keith all other thoughts had left me for a few heartbeats. His eyes are a startling clear emerald green … so much like my late husband's. His mouth had lines of stubbornness carved around it, making him appear older than the 16 years his file listed. Tom had always teased me that I got this stubborn expression in my eyes and those same lines around my mouth once I set my mind to something (was it stubbornly pushing my way into Medical School despite being a woman or defying the heart-wrenching diagnosis of his eminent death).
Yes, Keith showed certain characteristics he shared with me.
It was for that reason that I couldn't bring myself to just leave him that night.
Keith stood in front of the door to his neighbour's room. Dr. Cat had asked him to look in on a little girl throughout the night. It was the first time anybody had ever given him any responsibility … other than taking his medications as prescribed. She had not at all treated him like a sick, closer-to-death-than-to-live person, but as a young man who could be trusted. A fervent wish sprang up in him to not disappoint her.
That was surprising. When was the last time he had been interested in how others perceived him? In all honesty Keith had long given up on impressing his father, on proving to him that he was still alive and not yet dead. But Henry had lost his wife already and had used up his strength to pretend. He only counted the days left with his son.
Keith squared his shoulders and knocked on the door. Time to make someone see he was alive and still kicking.
"Come in."
The voice wasn't what Keith had expected. It was not the high voice of a small girl. Cautiously he opened the door and stepped over the threshold. He entered a room where all the walls and the ceiling were painted over and over with stars, planets zodiacal symbols, constellations and the Northern Lights. The furniture was kept in midnight blue and most ornaments in the room had something to do with night and the universe. 'Wow, Dr. Cat wasn't lying when she said we should make yourselves right at home', Keith thought awed.
A telescope stood by the window and a young girl was peering through it. She straightened up and turned around when she noticed his presence in her room. She was about his own age and about the prettiest girl Keith had ever seen. She had blonde hair which caught the moonlight in the room and painted a halo around her head. Her slender body was silhouetted by the light as well, making her nightgown seem almost translucent. Her face and eyes lay in shadows so he couldn't make out her expression, but her voice had sounded musical and friendly.
"Yes?" she inquired softly, since he still hadn't spoken a word to her.
Keith swallowed convulsively and gathered his wayward thoughts. "Hem, yeah, hi," he stammered, quite unintelligible. "I'm K-Keith … the boy next door." He blushed at his words and looked down.
A rich sound of merriment had him look up again and into blue eyes as Hope had stepped closer to him and smiled gently, offering her hand. "I'm Hope … your girl next door." Was she teasing him? He was incredulous. Then he caught the spark in her eyes. Yes, she most definitely was. "Nice to meet you, Keith. It's nice not to be the oldest kid on the block anymore." This dazzling smile of hers had not left her eyes and her friendliness was sincere.
"Dr. Cat asked me to look in on you … but if you mind … and I totally understand if you do …" Again this sudden caring for others since the new Doctor had come into his life. He stammered and his heart hammered in his chest. "… I won't bother you," he ended lamely. How he hated the awkwardness!
Hope flushed a brilliant shade of red now and Keith felt compassion rise in him. He wasn't the only one feeling awkward.
"I get nightmares at night and it makes my heart skip and flutter, but I can't sleep with the EKG and the heart monitor attached to my chest … I get the feeling of suffocating then and won't come to rest. Thank you for doing this."
"No problem," Keith assured her and he loved the feeling of being the strong one here.
