Chapter 28

NERVOUS.

That was how David felt staring down at the huge brown teddy bear he had gotten from the compartment store.

He shook his head lightly and slouched on the spot as he wrestled with his thoughts. Maybe an action figure would've been a nicer gift, or better yet, chocolates, everyone loved chocolates.

Right?

He sighed and pushed the teddy to the side, chancing a glance at his watch which read a few minutes past the hour of eleven. Today was the day he'd be meeting his son and underneath all that guilt and uneasiness was a man who so desperately wanted to leave a good first impression.

When the door opened, a young-looking doctor rushed into the office.

"I'm sorry for keeping you waiting," he said, smiling pleasantly as he took off his coat and hung it behind his chair. "I'm doctor Anthony, your son's Oncologists"

David cleared his throat, strengthened his shoulder, and reached for a handshake.

"It's so nice to finally meet you Mr. Argent but as much as I am glad that you could make it today, I am also saddened to tell you that your son's condition worsened overnight. "

David creased his brows together and he stared in confusion. "What do you mean it worsened overnight?"

The doctor sighed, removing his glasses and squinting his eyes. "As you know, Alex has a very rare case of chronic lymphocytic leukemia and without serious radiation treatment, it is hard to monitor the rapid spread. It has already gone beyond his bone marrow and just yesterday, his liver was attacked. We were only lucky enough to stabilize the spread but I'm afraid luck won't be enough to keep your son alive"

For a moment, David just stared. He was no doctor but certainly, he knew leukemia wasn't something to be taken lightly, most especially when it was chronic and lymphocytic.

He swallowed the lump in his throat and took a deep breath. "Isn't there a way out of this?

"Chemotherapy treatment could be a start off procedure but I think what we really need is a stem cell transplant and blood infusion"

"Isn't chemotherapy worse than cancer itself?" He asked even though he already knew the answer to that question.

"Yes that can be true but that is our best bet in fighting back"

He sighed. "Can we get started then?, I'll have my assistant deposit into the hospital as soon as the payment has been agreed on"

"We can not proceed with treatment without a ready donor available"

"How hard is it to find a donor that matches" at this point, he was getting frustrated, and sweaty.

"It's a 40% chance of finding a donor before his case becomes out of medical hands"

"What about a relative?"

"That could also work"

"Have my blood tested right away and if it matches we will begin treatment"

"Are you sure about this Mr. Argent?"

He didn't need to think twice about it. He owed it to Stacey and he owed it to himself. It was his son in question, his flesh, and blood, hell, he'd give a kidney if he had to.

He nodded.

"Very well then, for me to do that, I just need you to fill these papers for me and once you're done, we can proceed to the lab and have your blood samples examined"

He handed over the papers and once David was done filling them out, they went straight to the lab where what seemed like ages of critical examinations were carried out and after an hour or two, he walked out, feeling lightheaded and woozy as a good amount of his blood had been drawn.

"When will I hear from you?" He asked whilst trying to stop the blood from oozing out of his wrist.

"You'll hear from us within the week Mr. Argent" he informed.

David sighed with relief and thanked him, not really sure what he was thanking him for but he did it and then sighed.

"Does it hurt?" Stella asked, looking down at his injection bruise.

David nodded softly and smiled. "It's nothing I can't handle"

She sighed and lowered her head. "I'm sorry you have to go through all this"

David rubbed the back of his head with his free hand. "It's the least can do" he nudged her shoulders lightly. "Come on, cheer up. As long as Alex is okay I don't mind giving two pints of blood"

Stella smiled and thanked him, leading the way to the intensive care unit and with every corridor they navigated through, David felt his heart pound faster against his chest. He was nervous, anyone who was meeting their lost child for the first time would be.

"Are you ready?" Stella asked as they took their last turn.

"I'm a little nervous" he muttered, fondling with the teddy as they proceeded closer.

"It's okay to be nervous " she chuckled lightly and when they arrived at the door, David paused, staring at it hesitantly.

He sucked in a deep breath and looked down at the teddy. "Maybe I should change this "

"It's just fine," she assured, offering him a warm smile before opening the door and nudging her head. "Come in,"

David slowly walked into the room and turned to Stella as she closed the door behind him and sent a reassuring nod.

Gulping hard, he walked further into the room and turned around to see his little boy perching by the barricaded window with his hand propped under his chin as he stared dreamingly at the city view.

"Welcome back aunty Stella," he murmured without looking at her.

David swallowed his spit. The mere sound of his voice automatically made his heart beat erratically against his chest.

"Alex, what did we talk about you staying close to the window when I'm not around?" Stella scolded and he finally turned, opening his mouth to speak but pausing when his eyes settled on David.

For a split second, he looked at the two of them and then swung his gaze to Stella. "I'm sorry aunty Stella" he apologized, dragging his words slowly.

"Well, it's okay" Stella smiled and turned to David. "I brought a surprise along"

Alex swung his curious gaze back to David and he tilted his head as if trying to evaluate him.

David stared down at him. There was no doubt about it now, it was his son, and those dark winter grey eyes, Viking-gold hair, and little acne by the right corner of his ear were dead giveaways.

"Who are you?" The little boy asked rather pointedly and Stella cleared her throat.

"Don't be rude Alex"

"I'm sorry" he muttered immediately and lowered his head.

"Oh no, it's fine" David chuckled, kneeling in front of him. "I find his inquisitiveness amusing"

Stella cleared her throat. "Alex, you know how you've always wanted to meet your father right?"

Alex nodded, squinting his eyes suspiciously at her.

Stella smiled. "Well, he is finally here to see you. " she turned to David. "Why don't you say hello to your dad, David"

His eyes lit up immediately and they stayed that way for more than twenty seconds.

David creased his brows in fear of rejection. With the way the boy looked, it was hard to tell if he was delighted or disappointed.

"Stella..?" he called worriedly.

"He's just as stunned as you are" she assured with a small smile.

"Uh," he looked down at the teddy. "I brought you a gift. I figured you would be all stuffed In here with no toys so I got you a teddy to keep you company" he stretched out the teddy hoping he'd take it but Alex didn't. He just stared, his face unreadable.

David felt his chest feel suddenly suffocated. He pulled back the teddy and lowered his head.

Who was he kidding?

Did he honestly expect to walk in and be welcomed with open arms?

It'd been six years, surely anyone would've been shocked if their lost father suddenly showed up.

He mentally cursed himself for not thinking it through. He should've waited, should've gotten to know him first but he just couldn't ignore the part of him that wanted to be accepted.

He sighed and shook his head softly. This was probably the most pathetic thing he'd ever done in his life.

"You don't need to accept my gift" he spoke, raising his head lightly. "I'm sorry for not considering how you'd feel before walking in here. I know you're still a kid but I understand how hard it is to—"

He paused, hands caught in mid-air and face ridden with shock as he took in the cold feel of his son pulling him into a hug.

Alex's wrapped his thin arms tightly around his waist and buried his face against his shirt so that he wouldn't see him cry but David could feel it. The tears soaked through his shirt.

"Dad..." his little voice broke as he clutched him tighter and David let the teddy slip to the ground, wrapping his arm around him, tightly, protectively.

"It's okay" he crooned. "I'm here now and I'm not going anywhere" those were words he'd never said, words he'd never imagined saying, it was strange but yet, it felt good, so good that he hadn't realized when his eye watered up tears.

Alex pulled away so that he could look at him. He gaped at his water-shot eyes.

"Why are you crying father, aunty Stella always tells me that men don't cry," he said, his cold hand lifting to cradle his cheeks and wipe the beads of tears away.

David released a weak laugh and sniffed. "I'm not crying, I'm just really allergic to hospitals "

"Me too," He chuckled lightly.

***

DAVID HAD SPENT THE WHOLE day getting to know his son and the joy in his eyes as they bonded was palpable.

They'd talked for hours, on and on — never running out of topics to discuss.

Stella stayed quiet for most of the time. She had taken a step back and allowed them to bond and most times, David caught her watching them with a tinge of jealousy in her eyes.

After they'd eaten brunch and the nurse had given Alex some analgesics to ease his pain, he'd fallen asleep, and it wasn't until seven the evening when the sun slipped below the horizon that David realized he had to return home.

"Thank you so much for visiting today, I haven't seen Alex smile this bright in days," Stella stated, walking out of the room and quietly shutting the door behind them.

David sagged against the wall and released a soft sigh. Today had definitely gone better than he could ever have anticipated.

"The kiddo is going to be sad when he wakes and I'm not there," he said, staring intently at the door.

For a fact, he'd wished he could stay and make up for all the years he wasn't there as a father but he also had a wife who needed him and would worry to death if he didn't return home.

"Don't worry too much about it. I'll make sure he doesn't miss you that much" she assured with a nod and smile.

"Thank you, Stella. I'll have them move him to a more private room. If anything comes up just give me a call and I'll be here okay?"

Stella nodded. "I can't thank you enough, David."

"Don't mention it" he smiled and boosted himself up, preparing to take his leave when Stella reached into her purse and drew out a pink-covered journal.

"Here, I think you should have this. It belonged to Stacey" she handed it over but David declined politely.

"Oh no, I can't"

"I'm sure she would've wanted you to have it" she persisted, stretching it forward.

"This is too much, Stella"

"There's a lot of things about you in there, a lot of things she couldn't say to your face, read it, it'll ease the guilt that you feel"

"Stella its—"

"Please"

He glanced at the book and swung his gaze back to her.

He sighed. "Thank you, Stella, I'll keep it safe"