28
"You're such a sweetie, Becca."
Helen took the stack of books from my over-filled arms.
"Wouldn't want you to get bored," I told her. "You said paranormal romance, right?"
"That's the one," she said. "I've got a thing for those werewolf love stories."
I pulled up a chair and sat next to Helen's bedside. It was my evening to spend time in the adult ward, and I'd looked forward to seeing Helen again. She was a lovely lady.
"How are the hats coming along?" I asked.
Helen had come up with an idea to create party hats for the children. It was easy enough to decorate a piece of paper with stickers and fold it into a coned hat with a string for under the chin.
"I've already made more than a dozen," she said. "It's a fun way to take my mind off things."
I completely understood the need to distract yourself from the reason you were in the hospital.
"You're such a sweetheart to have put this together for the kids," Helen said. "It's such a wonderful idea. I know how hard it can be on a child, always in and out of the hospital at such a young age."
Helen and I were discussing the party when a nurse came in to check her vitals and make some notes on her chart.
"You seem in good spirits, Mrs. Walker," the nurse said as she made a mark with her pencil.
"This lovely young lady here has been wonderful company," Helen said.
Helen Walker.
Nathan's last name was Walker.
I knew his mom was sick and in this hospital.
She said her son always looked out for her when he was growing up. She also said he was something of a wild child.
No.
It couldn't be.
What were the chances?
"Helen…" I asked once the nurse was gone. "Is your son's name Nathan?"
"Oh no, don't tell me, you're a fan of Cherry Lips?" She gave me a crooked smile. "And now you've found out I'm his mom. Are you going to start stalking my hospital room to get a glimpse of him?"
I was too stunned to respond.
"Maybe I could ask him to sign something for you, how does that sound?" she asked.
I shook my head slowly. "No. I'm not a fan of Cherry Lips."
"Oh, are you a fan of his old band?" Her eyes turned sad. "I've always felt bad about everything that happened."
I knew very little about Nathan's old band. All he'd told me was he'd left them because he'd been going through some stuff. Had this been the stuff? His mom being sick?
"Everything…?" I asked carefully.
Her mouth pursed. "You didn't know? Well, I suppose not many people did."
