***
The day of graduation, I began to feel a spark of hope for my future. I wanted more than anything to leave this town and start a new life.
Dad and Renee would fly in that morning and meet me at the ceremony, and we planned to have dinner afterwards. I just had to get through the day knowing Annika would be there with her entire family watching.
I can handle this, I told myself, while wrestling with my hair in the mirror.
When I found my seat at the auditorium I scanned the crowd for my dad. Surely he was out there. As I searched for him, I spotted the Bashir family surrounded by their relatives…no doubt flown in from all over the world just to see Annika walk across a stage and grab a blank piece of paper.
She had no idea what it was like to be alone.
After we were officially graduated, I ran into the crowd looking for my dad. He wasn’t anywhere. I checked my cell phone.
No calls.
No texts.
When I looked up from my phone, Annika was standing there in her robe, her face distressed.
“Scarlett…can I talk to you?”
I wanted to find my dad. I almost felt in my bones if I didn’t find him, I would collapse in tears.
“Sorry Annika, I’m trying to find my dad. He’s here somewhere.”
“I just wanted to say…I’m sorry.”
She got my attention now. She looked tortured, so I listened as she spilled her guts.
“I was so cruel to you. And I didn’t know what was really going on. I’m just so sorry, Scarlett. Can you please forgive me? Can we please be friends again?”
I was dumbfounded. It was my turn now. The words came out fast.
“I’m sorry I went on a walk with Rhett. I don’t know what I was thinking. And about your brother…”
“You don’t have to say anything about my brother. I shouldn’t have interfered. It’s so weird, he’s harassed me for months, asking about you. He sent me this letter to give you…but I stupidly held onto it…for a while.”
She pulled out a sealed envelope. A letter from Dev. Curse the fates for doing this to me!
She placed it in my hand and hugged me tightly.
“I’m so glad we’re friends again…there’s so much to tell you.”
Before she could fill me in on what boy she now had a crush on, or what paint color she picked for her dorm room, my cell phone rang.
“It’s probably my dad.”
I answered. “Dad?”
“Hello, Scarlett?”
The voice was female, middle aged, and from the sound of it, fifteen years this side of a severe smoking habit.
“Yes, this is Scarlett.”
“This is Renee, your dad’s friend.”
Relief. They were here!
“Oh good, where are you guys? I’m down by the stage.” I looked around the bleachers for a woman talking on a cell phone and undoubtedly holding a cigarette.
“Scarlett, your dad is in the hospital. We rushed to ER early this morning and missed the flight. I got your number from his cell.”
My world stopped in that moment.
Hospital?
“What do you mean? What’s wrong? Where is he?” I demanded.
“He has pneumonia and it’s pretty bad. They’ve got him in some kind of coma so they can work on his lungs.”
“What?”
Annika put her hand on my shoulder to let me know she was there as I rambled into the phone, frantic.
“Why didn’t you call sooner?!” I screamed into the phone. I was losing it. “I could have been there by now!”
Her reply came back as a cold sneer. “Well, hon, this is me telling you as soon as I could. He’s at Franklin General. You have my number if you need anything.”
“So you’re not at the hospital with him?”
Silence.
“I can’t take those places,” she answered, feebly.
I guess she wanted me to console her and say, “No problem, Renee! Leave my dad alone in a coma because gray paint and bed pans give you the heebie-jeebies. You poor thing!”
I tried to control myself. I just needed to get to him.
“I’ll be there as soon as I can get a flight.”
After I hung up and filled in Annika on the situation, she hugged me and this time I hugged her back. It felt good to have a friend again.
“Let me go with you. My parents will just have to suck it up at the graduation party.”
It was a gracious offer, but there was no way I was going to incur more of Mrs. Bashir’s wrath by stealing away her precious daughter on this special day.
“No, it’s fine. I’d rather go alone.”