by Rinyu, Beth
“What?” I asked, knowing that he was trying to say something with his eyes.
“Kat, don’t set yourself up for another heartache,” he said in a fatherly tone.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, clueless.
“He’s around your age, nice-looking, and you haven’t stopped talking about him since we sat down,” he answered. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt,” he added.
“Thanks, but I have no intention of falling for Dr. Kiron.” I smiled, appreciative of his concern.
I decided that I would stop the talk about Julian. I instead began to tell him about the apprehension I had over my dad’s health. Charles reassured me that everything was probably okay and I was just being paranoid. It comforted me when he told me that he would have his wife Claire go over and check on him.
“How is Claire?” I asked.
“She’s okay, keeping herself busy while I’m gone. She hasn’t found a new husband yet.” He laughed.
“Well, she better not be finding a new shopping buddy,” I said, smiling.
Claire and I had a monthly ritual. We would spend an entire Saturday shopping from early morning to late at night. She and I had become so close. I was very fortunate to have her and Charles in my life. They were like my second parents.
“I don’t think you have to worry about that; you’re the only one as crazy as her with the shopping.”
“Well that’s good. Please give her my love,” I said.
“I sure will,” he said, taking another sip of his coffee.
I looked at him and thought what a wonderful dad he would have made. He and Claire had tried for many years but were unable to have children. I finished up my oatmeal, which was now cold from all the talking I had done. I was so hungry, I didn’t even mind. I wondered what would await me today as we walked over to the medical facility. I breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that I was scheduled to work the walk-in clinic with Charles. Anything of a serious matter would get referred to one of the doctors doing rounds or on call. I was still so tired. I couldn’t handle anything that would drain me emotionally. The day went by quickly. Charles and I were the perfect team. It was always such a learning experience when I worked with him. I looked at my watch, a half hour to go. Tomorrow was Sunday, which meant my day off and my weekly phone call to my dad. Even though I had just talked to him a few days earlier I still missed hearing his voice. I wrapped up with the last of my patients. I hung out and waited until Charles was done with his last walk-in.
“Are we ready to get out of here?” Charles asked as his last patient exited the building.
“Waiting on you,” I answered.
“Care to join me for dinner?” Charles asked.
“Of course,” I replied.
We walked through the village and up the hill. Charles had wanted to get cleaned up before heading to dinner and I had decided to do the same. We were engrossed in our conversation. I almost missed seeing Julian standing right outside of our building talking to three other men. Two of them were older and one looked to be about the same age as him. I gave him a quick smile, not wanting to interrupt his conversation. He immediately stopped talking to acknowledge my presence. I introduced Julian to Charles as Julian introduced us to the three doctors that he had been speaking to. The two older doctors were pediatric oncologists from France. They spoke perfect English. The younger one was a pediatrician from England. Charles jumped right into the conversation. He was clearly in his element being around all of these medical professionals from around the world. I, on the other hand, was not. I excused myself and told Charles I would meet him in the cafeteria.
“Hey Kat,” Julian yelled, running toward me.
“Yeah,” I answered, turning around.
“Those two doctors from France have a surgeon lined up to operate on Rapula and Tau.” There was sheer excitement in his voice. “They’re here working on the funding to fly them to France so they can do the operation.”
“Wow, that’s great!” I answered.
“I just have to check on them tomorrow and maybe do another round of chemo.” I could see the happiness on his face.
“I still say they wouldn’t have made it this far if it weren’t for you,” I said sincerely.
“Did you want to go with me again tomorrow? I’m leaving early in the morning,” he asked, trying to avoid my compliment.
“Sure!” I instantly blurted out. I just couldn’t say no seeing the eagerness in his eyes. It didn’t even matter that tomorrow was my much-needed day off.
“Okay, be ready by seven,” he yelled as he walked backwards toward the others in the group.
I smiled thinking about the enthusiasm on his face. He was beaming when he told me the news. This was his world. He existed just to be a doctor and nothing else. This again made me feel a little inadequate for not doing the same. After my excitement for Julian finally wore off a bit, it dawned on me that tomorrow was my phone call to my dad. I was unsure if I would be back in time to reach him, so I decided that I would check in with him after dinner.
* * * * *
“Kat, really, you need to start eating more,” Charles said, looking at just a small spoonful of what was supposed to be pasta primavera on my plate.
“I am,” I said, pointing to the two large chocolate chip cookies on the napkin beside it. Charles shook his head at me in disapproval, again, so much like my dad would have.
“So, what’s at seven tomorrow?” he asked inquisitively.
“What?” I said, playing dumb while dumb taking a sip of water. I hadn’t even realized that Charles was paying attention to my conversation with Julian.
“Julian told you to be ready by seven,” he clarified.
“Oh that.” I filled him on what was going on with the two boys. I explained to him that Julian had asked me to come along with him while he checked on them.
“Isn’t tomorrow your day off?” he asked again in a fatherly tone.
“Geez, are we still eating breakfast, or am I just having a déjà vu?” I asked jokingly. “Charles, I’m fine. Did you ever think maybe this is a great learning experience for me?” I asked in a more serious tone.
“You’re a smart girl. I just remember how hard it was for Claire and me,” he said.
“What are you talking about?” I said, stunned. “You and Claire are one of the happiest couples I know.”
“Oh, now we are, sure, but not when we first were married,” he replied.
He began to tell me about when he and Claire were first married. He was just finishing up his residency and Claire was a second grade teacher. They thought they could handle the craziness that comes along with being a doctor. They couldn’t, and it finally took its toll on Claire. They separated for almost a year, until he got into a practice and his schedule started becoming a little more consistent.
“Wow,” was all I could say. I was shocked. Claire had never mentioned that to me and we talked about everything.
“You know, they say the only thing harder than being a doctor is dating one or being married to one,” he said.
“I don’t know why we are even having this conversation. I told you this morning, there is nothing, nor will there be anything, going on with Dr. Kiron,” I said in a very matter-of-fact tone. “Now let’s change the subject, so I can eat my cookies in peace.” I took a big bite out of one of my chocolate chip cookies.
After we finished dinner I headed over to the phone area waiting for one to become available. I sat down on the bench listening to some woman speaking in a foreign language. I put my head back against the cool cement wall and closed my eyes. I began to daydream about being home and sitting on the beach. I missed it so much; the smell of the salt air, and the sound of seagulls flying overhead. There was something about touching the ocean and the sand that restored your soul. I missed my house and lying in my bed on a warm summer night listening to the crickets through the open windows. It’s funny how you don’t realize how many things you take for g
ranted until they’re gone. I opened my eyes when the woman seemed to be wrapping up her conversation. I jumped from the bench when I heard her put the phone on the receiver and smiled as she walked by me.
I was so happy when my dad picked up on the first ring. I explained to him why I was calling him on a Saturday and filled him in on the last few days here. I told him all about Julian and what a great doctor he was. After a while I found that I was rambling on about him again.
“Well, you certainly sound in better spirits from the other night when I spoke to you,” he said. “Would this oncologist have anything to do with it?”
“Geez, Dad, between you and Charles,” I said.
“Okay but I bet he’s handsome, right?” my dad asked, laughing. It astounded me how he could read me like a book, even when I was miles away.
I began to laugh. “Yes, he’s very handsome.”
“How did I guess that?”
I decided to get to my real reason for calling, the one that he was trying to avoid. “Have you gotten the results from the tests you had done?” I asked.
“Not yet,” he replied in a dismissing tone. “I’m fine. You have me on my way to the grave over a few little tests,” he added.
“I’m sorry if I’m being a nag, Dad, but I’m just worried about you,” I said.
“Well don’t worry, I’m fine, I promise you,” he said, sounding very reassuring.
“All right, I’m taking your word for it then,” I said.
We said our goodbyes and I hung up the phone still having a very uneasy feeling. I decided to take his word for it. I made the walk down the dark hallway to my room for some much needed sleep. I was hoping to hear the sound of the ocean in the far-off distance or some crickets chirping a familiar tune in my dreams.
Chapter 7
I was ready promptly by 7 a.m. and able to get myself together and out the door without waking Tricia. I was feeling a little jealous that I wasn’t able to sleep in myself. I timed it perfectly. I almost walked right into Julian, who was just exiting his hallway as well.
“Good morning,” he said. I couldn’t help but notice the small piece of toilet paper he had stuck to his face.
“Did we have a little trouble shaving this morning?” I joked.
He rolled his eyes at my sarcasm.
It always seemed much more laid back on Sundays, not the usual influx of people. It wasn’t as if there was less of a need for medical assistance just because it was Sunday. It was just an observation that I had made over the past few months of being here. This morning was unusually quiet, with hardly anyone around. Julian must have finally realized what day of the week it was due to the lack of chaos.
“Oh Kat, I’m sorry. I totally lost track of my days; it’s Sunday, isn’t it?” Sunday was the normal day off unless you were on call.
“That’s okay,” I said, reassuring him that I really did want to go as we walked out of the building.
The sun was just beginning to rise; it was one of the most breathtaking sights I had ever seen. The entire sky was lit up with different tones of yellow. I had no idea that so many shades even existed. The sky went gradually from dark to light in perfect unison. The trees in the background looked as if they were painted into a majestic picture of yellow hues. I could feel the heat coming from the sky already, even at this early hour. This was the first time that I had witnessed any of these sunrises since I had been here. I stood for a few more moments just taking it in, until Julian broke me from my awe-like state.
“Are you hungry?” he asked.
“No, I’m good,” I answered, reminding me of how stressed I was over eating my last power bar this morning.
“Are you ready or are you still looking at the sky?”
“Nope, I’m done, I just can’t imagine that something as beautiful as that exists in this place,” I said, looking up at the sky.
“What?” he asked in disbelief. “There are lots of beautiful things here.”
I found that pretty hard to believe. Besides this sunrise and him I hadn’t seen anything of beauty. All I saw was dust, dirt, depressing windowless buildings, and sickness everywhere you looked. If there was anything else then I had yet to see it. I had found that my whole attitude about this place was bad. I was counting the days until I could go home, but it seemed like when I spent time with Julian my outlook changed. Maybe that’s why this morning was the very first time I noticed the beautiful sunrise. There was just something about him. It wasn’t just his good looks. It was his personality, the way he carried himself, his carefree way. I found myself being drawn to him a little more each time I was in his presence. I was still doing my best to not give in to my feelings. Julian and I were just colleagues and I was going here with him for a learning experience – not for any other reason. I did my best to convince myself.
We arrived at the other village a lot quicker than the last time. Time always went by fast when I was talking uncontrollably, which I found myself doing again the whole ride there. I did manage to find out a little bit more about him in between my talking. His dad was a retired college professor and his mother was a teacher. He spent his childhood summers in Cape Cod with his grandparents. He was an avid baseball player and had many baseball scouts interested in him during high school. He injured his shoulder, requiring surgery and relinquishing any hopes of a career in baseball. He had his good grades and intense interest in medicine to fall back on. As I listened to him, I thought about how different his childhood was from mine. He had both parents raising him, a sister, and grandparents. He spent his summers away from home, which probably helped prepare him a lot better for being away. Just by listening to him I knew that things were a lot easier for his parents with putting him through college and medical school. Whereas my dad scrimped, saved, and worked every overtime shift possible to make sure that I had the best education possible. There was only one common parallel that I could see between us. His dream of becoming a baseball player was probably as great as mine to become a dancer. In turn, both of us opted for a career in medicine instead.
Even the dismal village from the other night looked a little brighter in the early morning light. Julian was immediately greeted by an African man and woman. The man was completely bald wearing tattered looking khaki pants and a white button up shirt that looked equally worn. The woman was dressed in a plain tan skirt with a white top.
The man approached Julian, clearly not knowing how to speak English. He began to speak in some dialect that I didn’t understand. Julian nodded and I wondered if he had really understood what the man was saying.
“Dr. Kiron,” the lady said with very broken English. “Thank you for saving my babies,” she squeezed his hand with tears in her eyes.
It then became clear that these were Rapula and Tau’s parents. I couldn’t imagine having one child with cancer. These poor people had two, in a third world country, totally dependent on the goodwill of others. Julian graciously accepted her appreciation. At the same time he warned her gently that there were still many obstacles to overcome. I listened to him explaining to this woman that there was still a chance that her boys might not make it. He had just the right balance of knowledge and compassion. The lady shook her head as if she understood but she didn’t want to hear that her boys might not pull through. This was so typical of any mother. I thought about the diversity in culture between this place and home. One thing remained the same, the love of a mother for their child. The woman thanked Julian once more before ending the conversation.
There seemed to be only two doctors as we entered the medical facility. They were running around crazily attending to patients. Julian immediately headed over to Rapula and Tau. I was feeling like I should assist one of the doctors with the influx of patients. I quickly retreated when Julian called me over.
“Rapula asked where the pretty doctor was,” Julian said, laughing.
“How do you know that he wasn’t referring to you?” I asked jokingly.
He smiled and shook
his head. Rapula and Tau were in their beds just the same as the other day. There seemed to be more of a spark in their eyes. They both smiled in unison when I said hello. Julian talked to them, explaining what was going on in a very age appropriate manner. Neither of the boys was very happy when they heard they would be getting a few more rounds of chemotherapy. I couldn’t blame them for that.
There were more doctors and nurses beginning to enter the building. Almost every one of them came over to say hello to Julian, while he administered the chemotherapy. Both boys seemed very tired. They both fell into a sound sleep not too long after their treatment was done. Julian was satisfied that they would be okay. I was surprised when he started packing up his stuff to leave.
When we stepped outside, it was unusually beautiful. It was still hot, but oddly there wasn’t any humidity and not a cloud in the sky. I was surprised to see the amount of people out and about. There were a group of men helping out working on a hut. Five women were gathered around a common area all dressed in traditional African attire. All but one had a baby in what looked to be a papoose on their back. There were children everywhere running around playing tag or an unorganized game of soccer. I noticed that every one of them had a smile, unaware that there was a whole other world out there.
Julian tried to locate Rapula and Tau’s mother to give her an update on the boys. He stopped dead in his tracks upon seeing a group of children trying to have a wiffle ball game. I looked at him with confusion when he signaled for me to follow him. We walked over to where the kids were. He began to speak in a language that I clearly didn’t understand but the boy holding that bat did.
An older boy spoke up. “I speak English,” he said in a very strong accent. He worked as a translator as Julian asked them if they wanted to have a game. They all began to smile as the boy translated Julian’s request to them.
“Okay, tell them, boys versus girls,” Julian said.
He turned around to me while the kids began lining up in groups of boys and girls.
