Chapter 5 The Longest 24 Hours

• The hospital ceiling had some thin cracks.. the walls must have heard the most sincere prayers, more of cries and sadness.
• I must have stared at them too long and lost track.
• It's funny how something broken could still hold itself together for this long…
• The hospital is kind of like me..
• I lay on the tiny visitor’s couch in my mother’s room, fully clothed, arms folded, body cold. I hadn’t slept, just blinked, hissed, sighed, breathed and repeated…
• Mom’s chest rose and fell gently on the hospital bed beside me. Machines beeped steadily, like they were singing lullabies to keep her from slipping away, a soft reminder that time was passing.
• I turned the brown envelope over in my hand for the hundredth time. I didn’t know why I brought it in with me again knowing what it contained. Maybe I thought if I held onto it hard enough, the answer would spill out like magic.
• That everything will finally work out in the end.
• But I couldn’t figure it out yet.
• All I could hear was a whisper.. “choose, you have to decide now”.
• Tears went down the two corners of my eyes.
• I wiped my eyes again, but it kept coming without warning.
• “Should I accept this offer?”.
• “Is this how I would lose my virginity after I fantasized about having an affectionate moment with the man I was ever gon’ spend a night with?”.
• “Should I go on? what if I can’t get pregnant?”
• “Nick Kings?”
• I picked up my phone to search who he was online, remembering how he was described..
• “coldhearted, powerful, wealthy and complicated”....
• “What if he kills me after I give birth to the child so I wouldn’t come close to him at all”...
• My head kept spinning, questions kept thudding in my skull.
• “What if I hate him?”..
• No, Haven….not now. I didn't know him enough to”... I murmured.
• “Would I trade nine months for the woman who gave me her whole life”...
• A soft rustle beside me pulled me out of my thoughts.
• Mom turned slightly in her sleep murmuring my name.
• "My Haven"...
• I swallowed the lump in my throat.
• This wasn't just a reminder but a choice to make.
• No one else was coming. Maybe Nick Kings is the miracle after all.
• No long lost uncle or aunt was coming. All they had to offer when my father went to ask for their assistance was…
• "Sorry, I can't. Wish I could, prayers, have faith and God will provide.. No help, nothing! Just mouth and mere words.."... I hissed.
• "No secret inheritance. I even thought of a Gofundme online but how long would that take? Days or weeks?"..
• I looked up at the wall clock, it was almost 5:00 am. I have until two hours to make up my mind.
• I stood slowly, walked to the window and watched dawn breaking over the sky. Golden Light pouring in slowly..
• 6:55 am…
• I stood beside Mom, holding her hand. Her breathing had changed. The nurse who came in a few minutes back kept checking the monitor and frowning more than usual.
• Then I knew something bad was about to happen…
• I watched Mom’s chest rise and fall like she was tired of the effort. Her lips looked pale.
• Her eyes fluttered once. Twice.
• Then… nothing.
• Just the machine.
• The beeping slowed.
• Then the chaos began.
• Doctors rushed in. A crash cart was wheeled over. Nurses called out codes I didn’t understand.
• I just stood there… frozen.
• One of the doctors tried to move me back but I held onto the bed.
• “No. No, she’s okay. She was just sleeping. She was okay…” I yelled..
• “Miss,” a nurse said gently. “Please wait outside.”
• I stepped back slowly, like my soul was dragging its feet.
• Outside, the room felt too quiet. It was too cold but I was sweating. I leaned against the wall and stared at the door.
• Seven.
• Seven o’clock on the dot.
• That marked it.
• A full 24 hours.
• The deadline Dr. Vanessa gave me.
• And now… Mom was fighting for her life...
• For a moment I felt my heart giving up too. I could hear the loud thuds of my heartbeat.
• I just stood there, shaking.
• Until the door finally opened thirty minutes later...
• The same doctor walked out. His eyes tired from the efforts he made to resuscitate her.
• “She’s stable,” he said.
• Just two words.
• But they were enough to make me collapse into a chair.
• She had come back.
• They had brought her back.
• She had almost given up…. but she didn’t.
• And in that exact moment, neither would I.
• I pulled out my phone with trembling hands and called Dr. Nessa.
• She picked on the first ring.
• I didn’t wait.
• “I’ll do it,” I said. “If this is how I lose my virginity, then… it’s for a good cause.”
• There was silence on the line.
• Then Nessa exhaled. “Are you sure?”
• “No,” I said honestly. “But I’m doing it anyway.”
• "Okay. Meet me at the hospital cafeteria in ten minutes"... Nessa said.
• ***********
• I sat in the hospital cafeteria, still clutching the brown envelope. This time, it wasn’t just paper.
• It was a decision. A contract. A path I couldn’t un-walk.
• Nessa walked in minutes later. She didn’t hug me or smile too wide. She just sat beside me and nodded.
• “You made the right choice.. You are doing this to save her.”
• I nodded slowly. “Yes, I have to. It's my only choice.”
• “Nick will want to meet,” she said.
• “I figured.”
• “It’ll be formal. He’s not… good with emotions.”
• “Okay,” I muttered, “Better.”
• “But he’ll respect your choice. And your terms.”
• I raised a brow. “I get terms?”
• She gave a small smile. “You're doing something most people wouldn't. So yes, you do.”
• I nodded.
• “Where will the meeting be?”
• “His office, probably,” she said.
• “No,” I said quietly. “Neutral ground. Somewhere public but quiet.”
• Nessa gave me a long look. “Alright. I’ll arrange it.”
• “Thank you… for the help and saving my mom’s life.” I said politely..
• She reached out and squeezed my hand.
• “You did the saving, Haven.”
• *********
• Mom’s eyes opened slowly, blinking against the light.
• She turned her head, saw me sitting beside her, and gave the faintest smile.
• “Haven,” she said.
• “I’m here.”
• “You look tired.”
• I laughed quietly. “You look worse.”
• She chuckled softly then winced.
• “Don’t laugh, you’ll break something.”
• She turned her palm up, and I placed mine in it.
• “I love you, Mom.”
• She squeezed it. “I know.”
• I leaned forward and kissed her forehead.
• “You just focus on getting better. I’ll handle the rest.”
• She closed her eyes again, but that smile remained.