Spiders!

by Troy McCombs

  ***

  Father and son were made to wait in the waiting room while the doctors worked on the girl. In that time, Josh called Mary. Steve, meanwhile, tried to shut himself out from the trauma by watching TV. It didn't really work. He absentmindedly glanced down at his shirt and saw the slap-in-the-face words: NO FEAR. Fear was the prominent feeling brewing in him right now. No fear, Steve! You're not afraid. Nothing scares you, not this, not anything.

  “Honey?” Josh gasped into his cell phone. He couldn't catch his breath. Other people in the room gave him funny looks. A heavyset woman scowled at him. A teenage boy stared menacingly at him. Not a happy bunch today.

  “What's wrong? What happened?” Mary said through the receiver. She noticed the abundant panic in her husband's voice—it was as clear as Dasani water. He spoke with a life or death tone.

  “It's Rachel. We had to rush her to the ER. I don't know what's wrong with her, either. Not really. Hello? Hello?!”

  An empty line. But Josh knew Mary was already on her way.