Her last chance

by Danielle Lee

  The door to the free clinic opened, letting in a gust of billowing snow. Dr. Vance sat at his desk, hands twined in his hair, looking down at something. When Bill’s voice sounded, he stiffened.

  “Evening, Doc. Planning on spending the night?”

  “Bill. No, sir. Just finishing up on a case,” he said as he slid what he was looking at under a few sheets of paper.

  Bill recognized it as he watched him push it aside. His wife had taken a picture of Warren and Kat. She’d given it to him a few days before Kat left.

  “You know, Warren, she’s miserable, too.”

  Warren looked up with tired eyes. “Who’s miserable?”

  “Warren, don’t play dumb with me. You know exactly who I’m talking about,” Bill said as he took a chair right in front of Warren.

  “Well, then she knows what to do. She knows where I am, Bill. She knows where I live, and she knows my number. For Christ’s sake, Bill, she knows where you are.”

  “Warren Vance, don’t you use the Lord’s name in vain. I know she knows all of that. You know how she is…stubborn. I don’t know where she gets it—probably her mother.” Bill’s eyes twinkled as Warren scoffed.

  “Well, I don’t feel like getting hurt anymore, Bill. If she wants me, then she knows what to do. I’m getting along perfectly fine here.”

  Now it was Bill’s turn to scoff. “Yeah, Doc, it looks like it. Is that a twenty-four-hour shadow growing on your face? Your bags under your eyes look just like Tommy’s dog Tobias. Not to mention, boy, you look downright awful. I haven’t seen you in a while. You used to come out and see me. No more fishing…” Bill shook his head from left to right, really laying it on thick.

  “Thanks for the lecture, old man…”

  “Old man? Now you see here—”

  “You’re old, Bill. And I, for your information, am trying to grow a beard."

  “It looks like the beard is growing you,” Bill joked.

  “Very funny. And fishing? It’s freezing out there. Damn near Christmas. So I would have thought you would have understood.”

  “Well, Warren, I would have understood if it were a day or two, maybe even a week, but a few months? I know how you feel about Katherine. You like her, right?”

  Warren shuffled his feet and got up to go to the water dispenser. He grabbed a cup and then filled it slowly.

  “Warren, answer me, Goddamn it!”

  Warren’s eyes widened. “Don’t use the Lord’s name in vain, Bill!”

  “I’ll do as I damn well please—I’m allowed to. Remember, I’m old. Besides, I think I have the right to know. She’s my daughter!” Bill yelled, waiting for Warren’s answer.

  “I love her, all right? I just don’t have it in me to go traipsing all over New York if she doesn’t feel the same for me. I’ve already been through hell with Sarah, but this...this is killing me. She is kill—”

  Bill walked over to him and put his hands on Warren’s shoulders. “Then you know what to do. Go to her. She’s at her place in New York. Gail wrote down the address for you on this card; she sends her best. You better go soon though, son. The last time I talked to her, she didn’t sound very good.”

  Warren swallowed. “What’s wrong with her?”

  “I don’t know, you’re the doc, why don’t you go check it out?”

  “Is this another ploy, Bill?”

  Bill just smiled, and handed him the card with the address and started for the door. “It may be…” He winked at him and grinned. “But don’t you want to find out?”

  Bill walked out the door, leaving Warren standing there, card in hand and mouth open. Warren wondered if this was all just a big scam to get him to go see her. He was sure that it was, but even if it wasn’t, he would have to find out if Katherine was all right. He picked up his bag and pulled his coat over his shoulders as he heard the door open once again.

  “We’re closed,” he said as he looked up, noticing Bill Daniels standing in the door once again.

  “Oh, and Warren…there’s always ice fishing! So get your head out of your ass, bring my kitten home, and come over next Friday for some fishing. The missus is going to bake, and we all know how good she is at that.”

  Warren just smiled as Bill shut the door once more. He’d missed that old coot. He just hoped he was telling the truth about Katherine. He hoped that she was miserable without him, too.

  ***

  She awoke that morning to a pounding headache and nausea that could knock out a three-hundred-pound man. Clutching the toilet, she threw up the last of her salad from the night before and the three Tylenol that she had taken moments before.

  “What a waste that was,” she said disgustedly. She took the towel off the rack and wiped her forehead and her mouth. When she heard the door buzzer, she felt like she was going to die. “Oh, God,” she said as she stood up and went to the intercom. “Yes?”

  “Katherine?” the voice called out.

  Oh, my God! She hadn’t heard that voice in a while. She pushed the button on the buzzer to let him up, and then ran back to the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and threw up once more only to hear a knock on the door. Using mouthwash this time, she gurgled and then spit.

  “Be right there!” She went to her bedroom, put her best blouse on, and pulled her jeans up. Going for the buttons, she gasped. Too tight. “Damn!” She grabbed another pair of jeans out of the closet—same problem. “What the fuck!” she yelled. “Hold on, sorry, hold on!”

  She decided that she must have shrunk everything at that cheap-ass laundromat on the corner of State and Main. She grabbed her robe, pulled it tight, fixed her hair with her hand, and then went to the door. She opened it to reveal Warren, looking great, and much like he did in her dreams.

  “Hi,” she whispered softly, panting a little from her clothing stint.

  “Hi, you look good, a little flushed…Are you okay?” He looked concerned. A little different, still handsome as ever, a little thinner, she thought. At least one of them was looking out for number one.

  “No, I’m okay. I just woke up. I’ve been tired lately. I’m not used to sleeping this long, plus I’ve been sick.”

  “Oh, sorry, would you like me to give you a checkup? Eat anything weird lately? Maybe some bad Chinese?”

  Small talk…She should invite him in. “No Chinese. Weird food? Yes, a little, but I eat weird things all of the time. Want to come in?”

  “Yeah, I was hoping to.” He flushed slightly as he walked in, noticing some of her laundry on the door. He turned to look around; the place was very small, considering where she came from. “Nice place.”

  “Thanks, I like it.” That was a lie. “I, Warren, when did you get in? Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?”

  Warren looked down at his feet and put his hands in his pockets. “Sorry, I had a medical conference and thought I would come see you. You’re the only person I know here in New York.”

  “Oh, work. Sorry, I misunderstood. It’s great seeing you again! What’s it been now, two months?” Two months, fourteen days, eight hours, and thirty-nine—no, forty minutes…to be exact.

  “Yeah, a little longer, give or take a few days.” He smiled, taking in the rest of the place, afraid to look at her eyes. She looked good. She’d finally gained a few pounds—much too skinny the last time. Her face seemed flushed, and she looked like she was going to be nauseous.

  “I…” She stood up. “Excuse me.” She ran into the bathroom, barely making it to the toilet, and then she threw up once more.

  Warren stood up, ran into the bathroom, and pulled her hair back. She turned for the towel and he already had it under the faucet, warming it. He wiped off her forehead and mouth. She stood up.

  “Thank you. Oh, God, I feel awful. There must be a virus going around. I’ve felt like this for a few weeks, but this is the first time I’ve ever puked. I’m so embarrassed. I certainly didn’t picture our next meeting with you holding my hair.” She had to laugh at that one.

  �
��Maybe you should go to the hospital, get some blood work done. If it’s a virus, there’s nothing much they can do, but they can make you comfortable at least.”

  He was concerned for her, and she felt numb. For the past two months she had wanted to fly home and tell him how she felt. She wanted to kiss him so badly right now, but it didn’t seem right to infect him with whatever she had. “I don’t know. I really don’t like—”

  “Just like your father, stubborn,” he said, a little irritated.

  “I’m not…Yes, maybe a little. If you think I should, I will, but I will warn you, I’m a little slow. I haven’t been walking that much lately. I haven’t been leaving the house.”

  “Why? Is something wrong? Have you been fired?” He looked into her eyes and waited for the truth.

  “Yes and no.”

  “What kind of answer is that? Yes you got fired, or no you didn’t?”

  “Yes, something is wrong, I haven’t been able to keep food down yet—never mind, you won’t understand. And no, I didn’t get fired. I quit my job.”

  “You quit your job?”

  “Yes, I—”

  “I promise we will talk later.” Warren shook his head. “You look pale, we really should get you to the hospital.”

  “Don’t you have your conference? I don’t want you to have to miss anything.”

  “Katherine, there, listen, I’m taking you to the hospital whether you like it or not. Now get your purse and your insurance card—we’re leaving.”

  “I have to get dressed,” she said, and then started to break down in tears. “Oh, God,” she cried.

  “What? What’s wrong?”

  “My pants don’t fit! I shrunk them all, all of them!” she cried hysterically. “I don’t have anything—”

  “It's okay, calm down. Do you have a sundress or something like that?”

  She started sniffling; it was cute. He didn’t have the heart to tell her that it looked like she’d put on a few pounds; he thought she looked better.

  “Yes, I have a dress. I’ll be back.” She turned around and grabbed a dress out of her closet, and then went into her bathroom and changed. “I don’t understand! This is tight—this has never been! I’m such a mess.”

  “You’re not a mess, you look good. And who cares if you put on a few pounds? I think you look wonderful.”

  Kat came out. He smiled, and she wasn’t.

  “A FEW POUNDS?” she snarled. “I haven’t gained any weight! I…”

  “I’m sorry, Katherine, It’s okay, I just—let’s go to the hospital, you look perfect. Please, stop crying.” He really was making a mess out of this. “Here,” he said, grabbing her arm and leading her out the door.

  They crawled into the back of a taxi a few minutes later. Katherine felt too sick to tease Warren about how awkward he looked hailing a cab. It took him seven tries. He had his arm around her in the back seat. The close proximity between them made her shiver just thinking about him. She wondered if he still loved her. She didn’t think a second of the day went by without her thinking of him. She could almost taste his lips.

  “How’s your practice doing?” she asked, trying to keep to small talk.

  “Good. I have a few new patients. I’m ready to move into a bigger office. How’s…never mind.”

  “What?”

  “Well, it’s just that you couldn’t stay in Connecticut because of your job—at least that’s what I thought.”

  The traffic was awful; the taxi lurched and stopped and lurched and stopped. Katherine kept making gagging noises. It would take a few more minutes before they made it to the hospital that was less than a half block from her apartment. Thank God he didn’t live here.

  “Well, I…I had a hard time when I came back; I’m surprised Mom and Dad didn’t tell you. I couldn’t keep up living here without…Well, like I said, I quit my job. I applied for a job with the New York Times, and I didn’t get it. Turns out the woman that was going to retire decided not to. You obviously haven’t read High Fashion for a while?”

  “No, I found it hard to do after you left. As for your parents, I haven’t seen them either. I can’t bring myself to see them. You look too much like your mother, and you have your father’s spirit in you. He’s been in the office a few times, but it’s not like it used to be.”

  Kat frowned. She had no idea how bad it had gotten for him.

  They pulled into the hospital parking lot; she barely made it out the taxi before she threw up once more. The cabbie turned his nose away and scrunched his face. “That’ll be eighteen fifty.”

  Warren shook his head, shocked at the price of a half-block ride. He fished out a twenty quickly, then rushed to Katherine’s side. “Keep the change,” he called to the driver. The taxi rushed off.

  Warren steadied Katherine as she finished heaving.

  “You wouldn’t think there would be anything left in there. Let me help you.” She looked run down, and most certainly didn’t look like she’d been taking care of herself either.

  “You don’t have to help me anymore, Warren. I can manage.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous, I’m going in there with you.”

  “Why? I’ve made your life hell. Why’d you even come and see me?”

  “I’m worried about you, Kat. You look like hell.”

  “It’s not your responsibility. I’m not,” she said as she started walking toward the door. She felt an odd sensation in her stomach, and put her hand on it. “Woo,” she said, “that was weird.”

  “What?”

  “I don’t know, just a flutter.”

  “Come on, you are worrying me more by the minute. Let’s go.”

  After two hours of waiting in the lobby, Kat finally got into the curtained area. Warren insisted on coming back with her. Not having the energy to deal with it, she didn’t argue. They took her blood and gave her a physical.

  “The doctor will be in to see you in a few more minutes, Mrs. Daniels,” the nurse said as she smiled and bowed out.

  “Miss,” Katherine muttered. “Why do they always assume that you’re married?”

  “Well, you’re with me in here. What does it matter what they think?” Warren spouted off. “Do you want me to leave when the doctor gets in here?”

  “No, what’s the point? They’re not going to do anything. I’ve asked for pain meds for the past two hours and all I get is smiles. What is that? It’s so damn hot in here!”

  “Hot? It’s not hot in here. I feel like buying a sweatshirt from the gift shop. What the hell, Katherine? Where did you say you…?”

  A dark-complexioned man walked in with his clipboard. The name on the tab said Williamson. “Mr. and Mrs. Daniels, I’m Dr. Williamson.” He smiled broadly.

  Kat rolled her eyes at the mention of her last name and looked at Warren.

  “I really don’t see any problems here at all. Everything looks good. I would say about eleven weeks.”

  “What are you talking about? I feel awful.” Kat looked up, terrified. “Wait, what? I only have eleven weeks, to what, live?”

  The doctor looked at her, surprised. “Mrs. Daniels, I thought you must have known. You’re pregnant, nearing the end of your first trimester. Everything looks terrific, but you will want to schedule yourself an appointment with an OB soon. We like to keep track of everything during pregnancy. Congratulations! I will send the nurse back in with the discharge papers and a list of OBGYNs.” He waved goodbye at the two.

  Katherine’s face was frozen in shock. Warren’s was spread out in a huge grin.

  “We’re pregnant!” he exclaimed.

  “I—I guess so, oh my God. Oh, my God” She started crying. Her hands went up to her face and started bawling.

  “Katherine, are you okay?”

  “Yes, I’m okay, I’m great. Here I thought I was just getting fat and losing my mind!” She laughed then wiped her eyes. “I’m so…”

  “I love you so much. There wasn’t a conference. I came here hoping to bring yo
u home with me. Please, come home with me.”

  “I love you, too! I—I lied earlier. I’ve been miserable, sick, and throwing up for the past few weeks, gaining weight, eating Rocky Road like it’s going to expire, and I quit my job at High Fashion before I even went to Connecticut! I was just too embarrassed about it. Besides, I thought for sure that I had the job at the Times.”

  He brought his arms around her and held her tight. “Katherine, I’m so happy, I love you so much.” He dropped down to one knee and pulled out a box from his coat pocket. “Marry me, Katherine?”

  Kat cried as she nodded. She waited for him to stand up, and then she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips against his. “Yes, yes,” she said.

  “Yes?” Warren pulled back, smiling.

  “Yes, definitely, yes! I love you so much. I now know that I can’t survive without you!”

  “I can’t survive without you either! Everything has been so miserable for me without you. I’ll live wherever you want. I’ll get a job here if that’s what it takes, but I will never let you out of my reach again.”

  “Oh, Warren,” she cried. “I want to go home with you. I should’ve known from the beginning that we were meant to be. I think I was the only fool that didn’t.”

  “We are pretty perfect together, aren’t we?” He smiled broadly. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  Three Days later

  “I just hope she apologizes,” Karen said, looking over to Tommy in the airport lobby.

  “Aw, come on. You really don’t think hard-headed Kat is going to apologize, do you? She still owes me one.”

  Karen looked annoyed. “For what?” She’d known Tommy was obsessed with her older sister, but thought that was pretty much over.

  “Now, Karen,” Tommy crooned, smiling. “I think you may be a little jealous.” Karen’s face turned red.

  “She owes me an apology for turning your old man against me. I never did anything to deserve that. I swear, sometimes he looks at me like he wants to wring my neck. It’s almost like he thought your sister and I slept together.”

  Karen turned her head fast and looked right into Tommy’s eyes. “You mean to tell me you didn’t?” Karen asked, shocked. She took a deep breath as he stared at her.