AUTHOR'S NOTE:
We all worry about different things in our lives and sometimes a little kindness from the people around us can go a long way. It is part of human nature to worry; sometimes it's necessary and other times we end up overthinking it…
This is when we find ourselves pushed into a corner and consequently, when your back is up against the wall you may start thinking:
Something's been making me blue…
Before we continue with our next Emotional scenario, I'd just like to point out that I have changed this story's rating from K+ to T because some of the upcoming events may not be suitable for younger readers. Don't worry! The content of these next few chapters won't involve anything overly drastic, but like I said it may not be suitable for younger readers and I thought I'd better change the rating just to be safe :)
Now without further ado, let's get cracking with the story!
Svinorita.
Chapter 9 – Something's Been Making Me Blue (Part 1.)
Jill decided to keep Riley home from school the next day. After a long sleepless night thinking about her Dad, Riley woke up at 6 AM sharp and immediately started nagging her mother about when they could go see Bill at the hospital.
"Come on Mom! We need to go visit Dad! He must be feeling lonely after spending the whole night in hospital without us!" Riley urged as she stood beside her Mom's bed and shook her awake impatiently.
Jill groaned and rolled over, her tired brown eyes meeting her daughter's worried blue ones. She glanced at her bedside clock before turning her sleepy gaze back to Riley. "Oh Sweetie…"
She reached up with one hand and stroked Riley's hair gently. A tiny smile formed on her lips as she whispered, "I know you're eager to see your Dad, but it's still too early to go. We have to wait for visiting hours and besides, your Dad is probably still sleeping. He needs his rest so his body can recover from the operation properly."
Riley gave a disappointed sigh and nodded reluctantly. Deep down she knew her Mom was right and whether she liked it or not, she had no choice but to wait until visiting hours opened at 9 AM…
Riley spent the next couple of hours pacing fretfully from room to room, pausing only to check the clock in the lounge room every half-hour or so as she anxiously counted the minutes separating her from seeing her Dad.
Finally it was five minutes to 9 and Jill announced that they were ready to go. Riley raced out of the front door like a bolt of lightning and headed for the car with renewed urgency. But despite her eagerness to get to the hospital, she still convinced Jill to stop along the way so they could pick up a newspaper and some flowers for her Dad.
XXX
When Riley and her mother arrived at the hospital, they found Bill propped up in bed chatting to Doctor Mikkelsen.
As Riley and Jill entered the room, the young doctor turned and flashed them one of his dazzling smiles. His voice sounded friendly and cheerful as he greeted them and this made them both feel instantly at ease that all was well with Bill.
"Good morning ladies!" Doctor Mikkelsen looked at Riley and assured her good-naturedly, "I have great news! Your Dad is recovering nicely and at this rate, he will be ready to go home very soon!"
The doctor chuckled to himself and threw a quick glance back at Bill. "Mr. Andersen, I think my work here is done. Your best medicine is right here!"
He gestured to Riley and Jill and exclaimed happily, "I'll leave you to bask in some unconditional family love while I attend to some of my other patients!"
Both Riley and Jill gave the handsome doctor adoring looks as he told them goodbye and left the room.
After a while, Bill cleared his throat and prompted impatiently, "Hey girls! I'm right here! He meant for the two of you to give me unconditional love, not him!"
"Oh Dad!" Riley giggled as she ran up to his bedside and hugged him tightly. "You know you're everything to me and Mom!"
She kissed her father on the cheek and then blushed before admitting quietly, "It's just that Doctor Mikkelsen is so handsome…"
"Yes well, I can see your mother seems to agree with you…" Bill replied gruffly, his eye narrowed at Jill critically.
Jill snorted with amusement and shook her head as she joined Riley at Bill's bedside. "Oh you old Billy Goat! I see you've got your sharp wit back!" She smiled admirably and kissed her husband on the lips.
Bill chuckled and returned her gesture happily. Then he noticed the lovely flowers that Riley was holding and he looked at her questioningly.
"My little princess! Are those flowers for me, or Doctor Mikkelsen?" Bill asked teasingly.
Riley blushed again and held out the flowers to her Dad. "Of course they are for you silly! I also brought you a newspaper and this…"
Riley brought her other hand out from behind her back and revealed the small wrapped parcel she had been hiding from her Dad's view up till now.
Bill's eyes lit up with excitement as he took the parcel from Riley and started unwrapping it eagerly. Riley laughed as she watched her Dad's mouth form a comical "O" of surprise when he saw what the mystery object was…
Bill stared at the framed photograph in his hands with a mixture of admiration and confusion. It was a picture that Riley kept on her nightstand of her as a baby. She was sitting in her highchair at the dining table while Bill was attempting to feed her some mashed carrots, the spoon held in a way that mimicked an airplane flying towards Riley's mouth.
"Okay…" Bill ventured hesitantly. He shot Riley a perplexed look and probed gently, "That's lovely Sweetheart. But since I won't be staying here that long, I don't quite understand the meaning of this…"
Riley was struggling to keep a straight face as she explained slowly, "Well Dad, I brought it to you so you can think and reflect while you're here."
"I mean come on! Look at that face!" Riley emphasized as she pointed to her baby self in the photo.
"Yeah I'm looking and that's the face I adore the most." Bill replied with a little smile. He glanced back at Riley and regarded her quizzically. "But I still don't get what you mean by this…"
The corner of Riley's mouth twitched as she fought back a smile and tried to appear serious. "Now think. That is the face you intend to turn into your slave when you leave this hospital! That's the face you want to have doing the dishes for you, taking out the trash, combing your hair…"
Suddenly both of Riley's parents burst out laughing and she shot them an incredulous look.
"Easy there young lady! I'm going to bust my stitches!" Bill wheezed through tears of laughter. He pressed a hand to his side as he tried unsuccessfully to stop laughing.
Jill rolled her eyes and mumbled, "A chip off the old block…"
Riley smiled and nodded in satisfaction. "Okay! Now that I've made you feel better, can I go visit Dolly?"
Bill finally managed to pull himself together. He wiped the tears from his eyes with the back of one hand and nodded at Riley encouragingly. "You do that Sweetheart. I heard from Doctor Mikkelsen that she's been asking about you!"
XXX
Joy, Sadness and Fear were watching the monitor with concentration. All three felt relieved that Riley's morning appeared to be going perfectly and Joy in particular was beside herself with happiness. She gave an elated laugh and scooped Sadness into a friendly hug.
"Way to go Sadness! That was a great idea about the photograph." The yellow Emotion praised her blue co-worker happily. She smiled down at her little friend and released her from her embrace gently.
"I know." Sadness sniffled quietly. "That photo always makes me cry…"
The blue Emotion took a handkerchief out of her pocket and blew her nose softly before adding, "Riley was so cute and everything was so much easier in those days! Her parents were young and healthy. We never had to worry about illness and the challenges of getting older…"
Sadness began sobbing and she turned away from the monitor, burying her face in her handkerchief and blowing her nose again.
"You were good too Joy." Fear chipped in, giving his yellow co-worker a proud pat on the shoulder. "You made everyone laugh and you always helped us find the positive in any situation."
"That was easy! I made everyone laugh because happiness is contagious!" Joy declared cheerfully.
She smiled at Fear and pointed out helpfully, "Things are starting to improve for Riley slowly and I believe that is in part because you are finally getting better my friend!"
"This morning, I noticed you ate almost as much as Anger and that nearly made me choke on my cereal!" Joy chuckled before unleashing a big yawn.
Fear shrugged and replied shyly, "I guess I was hungrier than I realized…"
Joy nodded and yawned again.
"Why don't you go lie down Joy?" Fear suggested gently. His gray eyes suddenly became filled with concern and he added nervously, "We don't want you to get sick like I did!"
Joy looked up at the monitor and back to her two co-workers hesitantly. "Are you sure you guys will be okay on your own?"
"We will." Sadness sniffled quietly.
"That's right! Now off you go Joy!" Fear assured her with as much confidence as he could manage. He started gently pushing the exhausted yellow Emotion towards the ramp leading to the sleeping quarters.
"I'll just wash the dishes from this morning's breakfast and tidy up in the kitchen. I've been idle for way to long and I'm grateful to have something useful to do! Then I'll rejoin Sadness here and we'll both keep an eye on Riley for the day." Fear promised her eagerly.
He left Joy at the ramp and headed into the kitchen to get to work.
"Okeydokey guys! I can sleep easy knowing that Riley is in good hands with you two!" Joy yawned again and started climbing the ramp.
"I'm beat…" She admitted tiredly and headed towards her room to get some much needed rest.
XXX
Riley opened the door to the patient ward where Dolly was staying and laughed silently at the sight that greeted her. Her friend had obviously made a full recovery from her bout of pneumonia and she was back to her usual fun-loving self!
Riley folded her arms and watched with amusement from the doorway as Dolly sang along with gusto to the Cranberries song "Zombie" which was playing from a small prehistoric-looking stereo on her bedside desk. In fact, Dolly was trying so hard to imitate her namesake; Dolores O'Riordan that she failed to notice Riley standing there laughing at her antics!
Instead, she carried on singing and packing her bags while busting out some classic zombie moves (although Riley was pretty sure the song had nothing to do with actual zombies…)
Riley cleared her throat gently and announced in a softly teasing voice, "I'm terribly sorry Miss Zombie Lady, but I think I have the wrong room! I was looking for my friend Dolly O'Hara… have you seen her by any chance?"
Dolly froze mid-zombie walk and turned towards the door with a huge grin on her face. "Andersen! You have no idea how much I've missed you!" She exclaimed excitedly.
Riley burst out laughing and enveloped her friend in a massive hug of greeting. "O'Hara! You look like the mother of all leprechauns!"
Dolly happened to be wearing the greenest pajamas Riley had ever seen and the front of her shirt was embroidered with images of little leprechauns that were dancing and leaping around.
Dolly smiled and stepped back, showing off her pajamas proudly. "You like? My granny sent me these from good 'ole Ireland! They bring me good luck!"
As Dolly spoke, she deliberately made her accent sound stronger and this caused Riley to laugh even harder.
After a few moments, Riley finally pulled herself together. She pointed to the bags Dolly had been in the process of packing and asked happily, "Are you going home today?"
"Yep! I'm as good as new and my mom will be coming to pick me up soon." Dolly sat down at the foot of her bed and patted the space beside her welcomingly.
"How about you sit with me for a while and fill me in on everything that's been happening in school during my absence?" She suggested eagerly.
Riley sat down and the two friends chatted about the events of the past week for a while. Riley told Dolly about all the boring tests she missed out on in school as well as the good news that Jenny; the acid-tongued leader of the notorious "Popular Trio" got dumped by the captain of the school's football team.
"Apparently, he left her for that new exchange student from Scotland and guess what? She has long fiery red hair just like Kristy! Isn't karma great or what?!" Riley informed her friend with a devilish smile.
Dolly nodded and gave Riley a high-five. "I bet that put a smile on Kristy's face huh? I always told her that she ought to be proud of her red hair, not ashamed of it! Now even the biggest jock in school thinks it's hot!"
Riley shook her head and sighed deeply. "I'm glad for her. Kristy and Mary both deserve a break…"
"Speaking of Mary, how is she doing? You haven't mentioned her much…" Dolly asked while giving Riley a curious look.
Riley's expression suddenly turned grim. Her blue eyes became filled with sadness as she whispered, "Oh Dolly, I'm really worried about Mary! She's had so many days off school lately and whenever she does turn up, she always looks so sad and withdrawn…"
Riley took a deep breath and continued bleakly. "I heard her crying in the school's bathroom on many occasions. Then one time, she was wearing a sweater with loose sleeves. As she tried to adjust her schoolbag, one of her sleeves accidentally rolled up and I saw some cut marks on her left arm!"
Now Dolly was looking serious too. "I was suspecting something like that might have been going on for a while…" She admitted sadly.
"What do you mean?" Riley asked hesitantly.
Dolly dropped her gaze to the floor and spoke quietly. "You see, it's not only the constant bullying that Mary has been forced to endure for so long. She's had it rough for most of her life."
Riley raised her eyebrow and stared at her friend with surprise. "How do you know that?"
"My cousin is Mary Bradman's neighbor and she witnessed a lot of awful things happening next door." Dolly explained in a low voice. All her former joy and goofiness seemed to have evaporated and Riley noticed that she suddenly sounded very sullen.
"She told me once that Mary's father is a nasty alcoholic. Apparently he can't hold onto any job for long and my cousin says that she often heard yelling and crying coming from Mary's house." Dolly shook her head and let out a deep sigh before continuing solemnly.
"My cousin works the nightshifts and many times when she came home from work, she found Mary and her mom standing outside in the dark. She told me that Mr. Bradman kicked them out of the house and locked them out. Apparently, he called Mary a freak and monster spawn because he can't understand how someone so ugly could be his daughter." Dolly sighed again and stared at her feet dejectedly.
"Mary's mother works hard but they never have enough money because Mr. Bradman spends all of it on his drinking. My cousin told me that Mr. Bradman and his wife got into a terrible fight one night while he was drunk. He ended up breaking his wife's ribs and Mary's mom had to go to hospital. During the time that her mother was away, Mary ran away from home and she lived rough on the streets."
"Apparently the situation with her father is so bad, that Mary would rather eat out of other people's trash than stay at home alone with her dad…" Dolly trailed off sadly.
Riley was staring at her friend in shocked silence. Tears rolled down her cheeks but she was too stunned to wipe them away. "Oh Dolly! I had no idea…"
"All this time I've been stressing about such trivial things!" Riley admitted guiltily.
She reached out and clasped Dolly's hand, her blue eyes suddenly filled with determination. "We have to find a way to help her!"
But almost as soon as she'd said it, a thought crossed Riley's mind and she added quickly, "But what I don't get, is why hasn't her mom's family tried to do anything to help them after all this time?!"
Dolly shrugged, her voice somber as she said, "My cousin says that Mr. Bradman is originally from Nebraska and that Mrs. Bradman's family are in Canada. Mrs. Bradman never invites her family to visit because she's ashamed of the way they live!"
Dolly turned to Riley and gave her a half-smile. "You're probably wondering how my cousin knows so much about the Bradman's, huh? Well the thing is my cousin lives alone. Her husband died many years ago and her children are all grown up and have families of their own. She gets lonely sometimes so she would occasionally invite Mary and her mom over for lunch. Sometimes she even let them stay at her house overnight until Mr. Bradman sobered up."
Riley was sobbing deeply by now. She thought about the happy, loving relationship she has with her Dad and how he's always joking around and trying to make her laugh. Then she tried to picture what it must be like for Mary when she's around her dad and how miserable he makes her life. Riley was shocked that Mary's own father could be so cruel to her and she felt utterly heartbroken for her new friend.
"Poor Mary. I never knew that her life was so awful…" Riley buried her face in her hands and started crying helplessly.
"Please don't cry Andersen." Dolly whispered as she gave Riley a comforting hug. "I don't know how yet, but I promise that we'll try to help Mary somehow..."
XXX
Sadness was also crying uncontrollably at the console. "Why?! Mary is such a nice girl! Why do people have to be so awful to each other…?"
Without even realizing it, Sadness had been pressing buttons blindly through her tears and the console was now glowing a deep sorrowful blue. The little Emotion had worked herself into one of her self-proclaimed "sadness spirals" and she was crying so hard, that she started to hiccup from the effort.
All of a sudden, Sadness felt a pair of gentle, light hands touching her on the shoulder and she turned around instinctively. She saw Fear looking down at her sympathetically, his big gray eyes full of kindness and compassion as he tried his best to comfort her.
"Oh Sadness… please don't cry so much." The purple Emotion whispered softly.
He nodded towards the monitor and stated reassuringly, "Dolly is such a strong and amazing girl and our Riley is pretty awesome too! We need to concentrate on helping her and together with Dolly, I'm sure we will find a way to help poor Mary…"
Sadness sniffled and offered Fear a half-smile of appreciation. Then she hiccupped loudly and looked away from his caring gaze dismally.
Fear smiled compassionately and whispered, "I'll go make you some herbal tea to help with your hiccups and then I'll stay here with you for as long as you'd like. You helped me when I was sick and you're always willing to listen when I or any of the others need a friend to talk to."
Fear squeezed her shoulder gently and turned towards the kitchen to go make some tea for both of them.
But before he left the room, he promised her again quietly, "I won't leave you on your own. We'll help Riley get through this together!"
A few minutes later, Fear returned with two steaming cups of tea. Sadness accepted hers gratefully and with Fear at her side, they stayed at the console throughout the day, determined to help guide Riley as best as they could.
To Be Continued…
