Two Worlds Apart
Chapter 1: The Lonely Girl
The bright morning sunlight shined through the 13th floor window of the tall hospital building. It was barely six o¡¦clock in the morning a little girl awoke from her dreamless sleep. The girl¡¦s face was as white as the walls, ceiling and floor around her. Her long black hair reached half way down her back. She slowly got up out of the large bed, snuggling her little feet in to her pink bunny slippers, grabbing hold of her IV stand she walked over to the window. The girl placed her frail body on the windowsill and leaned her face against the glass. Her hollow gray eyes stared out in to the blue sky.
¡§Kitty?¡¨ a quite voice called from behind her. The girl didn¡¦t turn. The owner of the voice slowly walked over to the girl and picked her up, walking over to the bed she whispered to the little girl, ¡§it¡¦s time to take your medication.¡¨ The girl didn¡¦t resist. She allowed the nurse to put her in bed and fed her the medications. She watched as the nurse wheeled her cart out of the room and softly closed it behind her. The girl closed her eyes and fell back into her dreamless sleep.
*****
When Kitty woke up again the room was not as bare as it was. It¡¦s now decorated with brightly colored balloons, flowers and ribbons. Kitty sat up in her bed and read the banner that was hung on the wall across from her bed. It read ¡¥Happy 6th Birthday¡¦. Yes Kitty remembered it was her birthday.
¡§Surprise!¡¨ the room all of a sudden filled with cheerful voices and happy faces. It was a surprise party. Kitty had no doubt who had planed it.
¡§Happy birthday!¡¨ Holly¡¦s joyful voice cried out from beside her. Kitty was filled with so many emotions that she was speechless.
¡§T¡Kthank you.¡¨ Kitty¡¦s sweet voice (so sweet it would make a nightingale envy) sounded for the first time that day. ¡§You shouldn¡¦t have gone through all that trouble just for me.¡¨
¡§Non-sense you lived for a whole other three years. That is a miracle, why shouldn¡¦t we celebrate?¡¨ Holly smiled at Kitty and reach out her hand to help her out of bed. ¡§Now hurry before the others eat all the food.¡¨ Kitty gave a small smile and went to join the other kids who have already surrounded the food table munching away on the chips and sweets on the beautifully wrapped table.
*****
In side Kitty¡¦s heart, she felt so warm, it was the best birthday she had ever had. Kitty had a rough life. On her first and second birthday she was living with her father, who didn¡¦t seem to want to celebrate her birthday since her mother had died giving birth to her. On her third birthday her father had abandoned her on the steps of the hospital (since it was the closest place that was dry he could find), where they announced that she had an incurable dieses. Her fourth and fifth birthday she suffered from her illness. The worst thing was Kitty had understood and remembered all of it. The doctors said it might have been caused by the tumor that was deep in her head. All her life Kitty had wondered whether the physical pain from the tumor was worse or the emotional pain of realization was worse.
Kitty did not want to think about things like that on a day like this. It was her sixth birthday and the first full year of friendship between her and Holly.
¡§I could still remember the day we met.¡¨ Holly said holding Kitty in her lap. Kitty smiled in response. They both sat remembering.
*****
Holly was a young volunteer. They first met when Holly was 13 and she was 5, Kitty could recall on the day of her birthday Holly walked in pushing her book cart. It was her first day volunteering at the hospital and her job was to go around to the patients bringing them books and games for them to entertain themselves with. Before Kitty met Holly she wouldn¡¦t speak to anyone because her short past has hurt her hart and closed her up. Kitty understood what everyone was saying about her, and several times she attempted suicide. Everything changed when she met Holly.
Holly walked up to the door and paused, she looked at the door. It was room number 1313 the room the nurses had warned her of, the room with the orphan girl. She took a deep breath and told herself ¡¥I will do the impossible, and as long as I am here the girl will be happy.¡¦ She peeked into the door and saw a small shape on the windowsill. The figure turned its head to face Holly. The moment Holly looked into the pair of large gray empty eyes she felt a chill ran up her spine. ¡¥How can a three year old child be so sad?¡¦ she wondered to herself. The girl turn her head and looked out the window again. Holly edged closer and stopped when she saw the little girl start to back away, pressing herself into the corner of the windowsill. Holly stopped and looked into her cart. She looked through the bin of children¡¦s picture books when something caught her eyes. At the foot of the little girl lies a thick old book; the letters engraved on the leather cover could read ¡¥Hamlet, by William Shakespeare.¡¦ Holly was amazed at how such a little child would read Hamlet. She had to read it too in school and it was boring and hard to understand. Holly instantly changed her mind and from her backpack pulled out a book she has been reading ¡¥Harry Potter and the Sorcerer¡¦s Stone¡¦ she had gotten it as a gift for her birthday. She left her cart and walked a little closer until the windowsill is with in arm length and she set the book on to of Hamlet and said.
¡§My name is Holly, I¡¦m going to leave this here and you can read it if you want to.¡¨ Seeing the girl didn¡¦t respond Holly stepped back towards her cart and left. That was when something unexpected happened. The closed up little girl reached out and took the book and she smiled.
¡§That was the first present anyone has ever given me.¡¨ Kitty said reaching behind her pillow and retrieving a thick paper back to show everyone. All the kids had gathered around her bed to hear her story of her and Holly¡¦s friendship.
¡§The second time I came back¡¨ Holly continued, ¡§ she showed me what a sweet girl she was.¡¨
¡§ And you lived happily ever after?¡¨ one of the older children joked. Everyone laughed, even the younger ones, for they all knew they are dieing. There was little hope for any of them. Most of them have very poor families who cannot afford better treatment for their cancer. Others had no hope at all; dieing was a common thing in the cancer floor, but all the kids live on day by day. They are all just putting one foot in front of another and try to get as far as they could.
¡§Alright.¡¨ Holly said finally, ¡§it¡¦s getting late, so let Kitty open her presents and you all should go back to bed.¡¨ Everyone groaned, but they quickly brought their presents to Kitty. One by one Kitty opened present after present, there were paintings, crafts, toys and even a new nightgown. A smile spread across Kitty¡¦s usually sad face, this was the best day of her life. When finally all the kids left and the decorations and leftovers had been cleared away Holly came and sat down next to Kitty.
¡§It was a good party, wasn¡¦t it?¡¨ Holly asked.
¡§Yes it was the best ever.¡¨ Kitty replied. Holly took a little box out of her bag and hand it to her. Kitty hesitated; after all Holly¡¦s done for her already Kitty couldn¡¦t take the present.
¡§Go ahead, open it.¡¨ Holly gently shoved the box in to Kitty¡¦s hands. Kitty carefully unwrapped the hand-made wrapping paper and lightly lifted the lid of the box. Inside a gold necklace with a blue crystal glittered in the remaining sunlight of the day.
¡§It is beautiful.¡¨ Kitty gasped.
¡§Do you like it?¡¨ Holly questioned urgently. Kitty nodded lost of words, ¡§I thought you might. I found it in a old second hand shop, I figured you like Harry Potter and magic so much it looks like something you would like to have.¡¨ Yes Kitty has always been enchanted by magic. Not fairy-tale magic where the prince and princess lives happily ever after. She liked real magic with witches and wizards, dragons and unicorns, angels and demons.
¡§Here let me put it on for you.¡¨ Holly took the necklace and placed it around Kitty¡¦s neck. After fastening the clasp she pulled back to admire it.
¡§How does it look?¡¨ Kitty asked nervously, feeling the cool chain around her neck.
¡§It wouldn¡¦t look better anywhere else.¡¨ Holly admitted.
After Holly left Kitty went to sleep with her new necklace and nightgown. For the first time in a long while, she wore a smile on her face to sleep.