Johnny was lying in a hospital bed, his eyes closed. The light in the room was too much even though all the curtains were shut it still made him dizzy. Suddenly he felt someone's hand on his forehead – the nurse he realized, maybe she would put a wet towel on his forehead as she did before. He half opened his eyes. "What day is it today?" Johnny asked, his voice strained.
The nurse was hesitant for a moment – "Today is Thanksgiving."
Johnny tensed up and closed his eyes. His parents never celebrated Thanksgiving, and even though he usually spent Thanksgiving at the Curtis it wasn't the same as spending time with his family which is what this holiday was all about.
The nurse bent down to his level, "Johnny," her soothing voice interrupted Johnny's bitter thoughts, "how are you feeling? Are you up for seeing some people?" Johnny squinted and adjusted his eyes. Finally he was able to focus in on the nurse's face. "Who?" He croaked.
"Mr. and Mrs. Whitney, they are the parents of one of the boys that you saved." Johnny was thoughtful for a moment, then a weak smile crossed his lips. He lifted his head off the pillow – "Yeah, I'll see them." The nurse adjusted the pillow and helped Johnny to sit up. It was difficult for him since he didn't feel anything below his waist. "I'll let them in," the nurse said in a soft voice, and Johnny just nodded in response.
The door opened a crack, and a man and a woman walked in. They looked to be in their thirties. The woman was carrying a small box. They were walking carefully, as if trying not to make any noise even though Johnny clearly was not asleep. There was an awkward silence in the room. Then the man pulled nervously at the brim of his hat. "Hi Johnny," he managed walking up to the bed. "I am Mr. Whitney and this is my wife Sandra. You saved our boy Nickolas."
Mr. Whitney stopped talking, and there was an awkward moment once again. Thankfully the wife stepped forward. "We are so thankful," she said, "he would've surely died if it wasn't for you." She choked up a little as she was speaking, and a tear rolled down her cheek. "Here," she proceeded to open the box and place it on Johnny's bed. It was full of what appeared to be greeting cards.
"Nickolas and his friends wanted to give it to you." Johnny picked up a card. There was a drawing inside – it looked like a blazing fire. And there were words written with crooked letters - 'Johnny Cade a hero, get well soon.' Johnny looked at the next card, and then the next. They were all get well cards. Johnny smiled in spite of himself. "Thank you ma'am," he looked up at Sandra. The man took his hat off – "No thank you son, the world needs more people like you." Johnny blushed slightly, and looked down.
Sandra reached into her bag and took out a small jar – "here, I made some cookies. It's not much," she smiled as if apologizing. Johnny smiled, "thank you ma'am." He took a bite and started chewing. "Oh, these are delicious," he grabbed another one. It looked like just for a moment he forgot the dire situation he was in, and was just being a kid again.
"Ok, we are going to go," Mr. Whitney was awkwardly tossing his hat in his hands. "If you ever need anything just let the nurse know we'll get it for you."
"Thank you Johnny," Sandra chocked up again, then she hesitantly leaned in and gave Johnny a hug, "God bless you child," she said. Johnny wiped a tear that rolled down his cheek.
After they left, Johnny felt tired, but he kept looking through all the cards that the kids made, and once again felt that it was definitely worth it trying to save those kids.
A nurse poked her head in, "Johnny you have some more visitors." Johnny's eyes widened – "ok." The nurse stepped aside, and a girl, who looked about Johnny's age, walked in. At first Johnny didn't notice, but then he looked down and realized this girl wasn't alone. A little girl maybe five or six years old was walking next to her, tugging at her sleeve. Johnny recognized her right away. She was the one that bit Pony's hand when he was trying to pick her up, and while Pony was recovering, it was Johnny who picked her up and tossed her out of the window of the blazing church.
The older girl stopped in the middle of the room, looking hesitantly around, not knowing if she should get closer to Johnny's bed. The little girl looked outright scared, and was looking apprehensively at the burns on Johnny's neck.
"Hi, I am Marisa," the older girl spoke up, "and this is my sister Emily, you saved her life."
"Oh, I remember you, missy," Johnny smiled in spite of himself. Emily just kept staring at Johnny's burns.
"Don't be scared," Johnny said softly. Emily took a few steps forward.
"Does it hurt?" she finally managed.
"A little," Johnny replied, "it used to be much worse, but the doc fixed it up real good."
Emily walked up even closer. "Are you going to die?" she said in a small voice, clearly upset.
"Emily!" Marisa hushed, a shocked look on her face.
"Promise you are not going to die," Emily pouted and looked at Johnny with such despair. Johnny could bawl at the look she had in her eyes. Johnny controlled himself. He swallowed hard, and looked her right in the eyes – "I promise."
"Pinky swear," Emily walked up yet closer, and hooked her pinky around Johnny's.
"Pinky swear," Johnny's voice quivered slightly as he spoke. He looked up at Marisa, and her eyes welled up with tears. He felt his own eyes well up with tears as well so he blinked quickly forcing them away.
"Thank you so much," Marisa spoke up through her tears. "I don't know how we would've survived if it wasn't for you." Johnny smiled shyly, "don't mention it."
"Oh, I am going to mention it," Marisa said, and then added with a small smile – "and you just can't die now, you hear me. You are strong, you are going to pull through, and you pinky sworn and everything. You just can NOT die now." Johnny sighed heavily, and didn't say anything. He closed his eyes for a moment and his breathing was no longer steady.
Marisa realized that he was getting tired. "We are going to go," she said softly, "but we'll be back in a few days to check on you." Johnny nodded. Marisa and Emily started walking towards the door, Emily turning around one last time to look at Johnny. – "He is going to be ok, right?" she said to Marisa in a small voice almost starting to cry.
"He will be just fine," Marisa replied stroking Emily's hair and ready to cry herself. Then Marisa turned around and looked Johnny right in the eyes – "Happy Thanksgiving Johnny Cade," she almost whispered. Johnny wiped another tear, and just mouthed with his lips "Happy Thanksgiving."
After they left, Johnny just felt this warmth in his heart. There were people who cared about him, who didn't want him to die. They could've spent their Thanksgiving with their families and friends, but they chose to visit him instead. Johnny didn't know if he could keep his promise, but turning onto his side and closing his eyes he thought once again that it was definitely worth it saving those kids. Whatever God's will is, it will be done, but whether he lived or died he knew it was worth it.
A/N I'll leave it up to you to decide if Johnny died or not. Hope you enjoyed this little story. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.