him down.
I marched right up to his desk, and he glanced at me before turning back to the
window.
“Please,” he said to me. His tone was defeated, as though he didn’t have the strength
to confront even me.
“I’d like to talk to you,” I said firmly. “I wouldn’t ask unless it was very important.”
Hegbert sighed, and I sat in the chair I had sat in before, when I’d asked him if he
would let me take Jamie out for New Year’s Eve.
He listened as I told him what was on my mind.
When I was finished, Hegbert turned to me. I don’t know what he was thinking, but
thankfully, he didn’t say no. Instead he wiped his eyes with his fingers and turned toward
the window.
Even he, I think, was too shocked to speak.
Again I ran, again I didn’t tire, my purpose giving me the strength I needed to go on.
When I reached Jamie’s house, I rushed in the door without knocking, and the nurse
who’d been in her bedroom came out to see what had caused the racket. Before she could
speak, I did.
“Is she awake?” I asked, euphoric and terrified at the same time.
“Yes,” the nurse said cautiously. “When she woke up, she wondered where you
were.”
I apologized for my disheveled appearance and thanked her, then asked if she
wouldn’t mind leaving us alone. I walked into Jamie’s room, partially closing the door
behind me. She was pale, so very pale, but her smile let me know she was still fighting.
“Hello, Landon,” she said, her voice faint, “thank you for coming back.”
I pulled up a chair and sat next to her, taking her hand in mine. Seeing her lying there
made something tighten deep in my stomach, making me almost want to cry.
“I was here earlier, but you were asleep,” I said.
“I know … I’m sorry. I just can’t seem to help it anymore.”
“It’s okay, really.”
She lifted her hand slightly off the bed, and I kissed it, then leaned forward and
kissed her cheek as well.
“Do you love me?” I asked her.
She smiled. “Yes.”
“Do you want me to be happy?” As I asked her this, I felt my heart beginning to race.
“Of course I do.”