Angel of Mine

by Jessica Louise

  “It’s okay Ally, I’m right here.” It takes a few minutes for her to settle and I hold her tight until she relaxes into me.

  We must have been asleep for hours now. Through the window, I can see the sun is starting to set, and it casts shadows around my room. Muffled voices sound from the living room and I scrunch my face up in concentration, trying to figure out what’s going on in there.

  One unfamiliar male voice clearly stands out from the rest. “How is she doing?” I gently peel my body away from Ally’s and sit up in bed. I know whom that voice must be. My jaw locks and my muscles are instantly wound tight. Ally’s father is here.

  Careful not to wake Ally, I climb out of bed to go and confront him. Before I leave, I switch on the bedside lamp and stretch my limbs that are stiff and sore from lying in bed too long. My fist involuntary clenches and unclenches a few times in preparation, just in case. I have things to say to this moron. He’d better watch his P’s and Q’s.

  As I walk into the room, dead silence descends and four sets of eyes focus on me. The mystery man’s back is to me, but he soon turns around to see what all the fuss is about.

  “Hi, I’m Jeff, Ally’s dad.” You’re not her dad; you’re her sperm donor. I keep that thought to myself though. As much as I feel the urge, Ally doesn’t need us all fighting out here.

  I’m sure my family is probably worried about how easily I punch people as of late. They all know I think very little of this man. Their eyes dart back and forth between the two of us. Chill guys, I’m not going to hurt him. Not yet anyway.

  I walk over to the couch and stand tall above him, trying my best to intimidate him. He needs to watch that his face doesn’t ‘accidentally’ get too close to my fist. Jerk. I don’t take my eyes off his face, and he doesn’t cower from my scare tactics. He’s either very brave or very stupid. No one messes with Ally on my watch, and I plan to make damn sure he understands that.

  When he stands, we come to about the same height, with only an inch or so difference. He reaches out and takes my hand in his to shake it. Heat engulfs my palm, and I look down. My jaw goes slack. Jeff’s hands are glowing.

  Shocked, I look up at him and then to everyone else, and then back to him. I realise I’m still shaking his hand. I drop it and try to form words.

  “What the hell man? Your hands are glowing.” Hello, captain obvious.

  “Yes, it’s because I know Ally is only ten meters or so away from me and is very sick. Why don’t you take a seat Theo? I was just explaining a few things to Carol and your family. Let me catch you up to speed.” I stay where I am and cross my arms over my chest, trying to see any sign of remorse on his face.

  I’m not a fan of his past actions, but when I look at him, I see honest blue eyes, just like Ally’s. They share the same chocolate colour hair too; she looks just like him. Maybe I should hold back the interrogation and give him a chance?

  “I thought it was in the girls’ best interest that I leave.” Incredulous, I snort and roll my eyes. I thought about being nice to him, but then again second chances are over-rated. “I didn’t know Ally had the same ability as me.”

  “It didn’t occur to you to stick around and find out?” I narrow my eyes at him. There is no way he can explain his way out of this.

  “I know what it must look like, but it’s true. It’s very hard to hide glowing hands. While Carol was pregnant, it was easier to keep up with hiding it because she was preoccupied. After that though, not so much. There was no way I was going to risk being caught and bring that type of media attention around my girls. I had to leave to keep them safe, but I never stopped loving them.” He hangs his head in shame, but I don’t buy his act. If he’d at least checked up on them over the years, he might have known that Ally and Carol faced the very same problem and needed his help.

  “Are you going to put your gift to good use?” I quirk an eyebrow at him, Come on buddy, time to finally stand up and be the father your daughter deserves.

  “Theo, that’s enough,” my mum chastises.

  Jeff raises his hand in the air to hold her off. “It’s okay. I know you are all wondering the same thing. The answer is yes. I know you don’t think I’m much of a man,” he looks directly at me while saying this. “But you will see how deeply I still care about my daughter. It takes a strong emotional connection to be able to cure an illness that consumes so much of the body. I have tried before and failed. I know it won’t be a problem with Ally though. I love her more than life itself.” I wonder, because our emotional connection and love was so much stronger, if that was how Ally was finally able to heal me in the end.

  At this revelation, my posture finally loosens up, and I go to take a seat beside Alex. He always seems to be able to calm me down when I lose my cool.

  Once I’m not so fixated on Jeff, I notice how visibly distressed Carol is across the room. A tight-lipped frown sits upon a face that has aged years in just days. She swallows hard repeatedly in an effort not to cry.

  Mum moves to Carol’s side, holding on to her hands, trying to comfort her. She whispers something in Carol’s ear, but I am too far away to hear it.

  Jeff goes to her side and shifts uncomfortably from foot to foot. He reaches out to her, and at the last minute changes his mind and pulls his arm back. His hand hovers halfway in-between the two of them, indecisive.

  “She still loves you too you know,” I admit on Carol’s behalf.

  My mother’s angry eyes flash up at me, and her nostrils flare. “Theo shut your trap. You aren’t helping matters.”

  Someone had to say something; we don’t have eternity to pussy foot around the issue. “It’s not like we have a lot of time here Mum. I’m just trying to help them out.” It looks like it worked too. Jeff sits down beside Carol and pulls her into his arms.

  Alex taps me on the arm and gets my attention, “Hey, why don’t you go explain to Ally that her dad is here so that she doesn’t get a shock, and give Carol and Jeff a chance to talk?” My brother definitely has a knack for diffusing a stressful situation.

  “I think that’s a great idea,” my dad complies from behind us. “Alex, Rach honey, let’s go out on the deck for a while and give them some space.”

  Everyone disperses from the room and I head back in to see Ally. The sight I’m met with stops my heart. She is thrashing about on the bed; her features twisted in pain. Anguished cries escape her throat and tears well up in my eyes.

  “Alex, Jeff, get in here,” I demand, my voice coming out thick. Pain relief still sits on the nightstand; I get a morphine injection ready and wait for Alex to hold her steady before I administer it.

  They rush into the room, both breathless with their eyes wide. Alex sees what I am doing and goes over to Ally’s side. He knows what I need without me even having to ask.

  The morphine works fairly quickly, and the rapid heartbeats in my chest begin to slow. Her face is now a mask of serenity, but I wonder for how long. This flu has really done a number on her already weakened immune system. I can feel intense heat rolling off her body in waves, and without even touching her, I know that she has a temperature. If Jeff doesn’t heal her soon, we will have to go to the hospital.

  A pale yellow tinge colours her skin, I’m sure of it, but rub my eyes to see if they are deceiving me. How is it possible that she is deteriorating so quickly? Surely, her organs can’t be shutting down already. Maybe it has something to do with how quickly she took my leukaemia from me, and the flu is accelerating her downfall even more so. It’s not natural, but then again neither is her ability.

  What will happen to Jeff if everything happened so quickly for Ally? I’m selfish enough to push that thought away though. Each laboured breath that leaves her mouth is tearing another piece of my heart away. I need her healthy again before I lose my sanity.

  I look up at Jeff who is hovering by the door. He is torn between coming to Ally’s side and going back out to Carol, his gazing switching between the two of them uncertain.

 
“Go say good-bye to Carol, I will stay with Ally until you are ready.” The message is blunt but clear, hurry up; you are running out of time. He gulps and nods his head, then glances at Ally one more time before leaving the room.

  “I’ll be out on the deck if you need me,” Alex says on his way out, giving me some privacy to wrap my head around all the emotions whirling inside of me.

  I get more and more anxious as time ticks on, but I don’t dare take my eyes off Ally to see how long it’s been. After what seems like forever, Jeff comes back into the room with Alex by his side. “I will need you both in here in a moment, but first do you think I could have a few moments alone with my daughter?”

  I really don’t want to leave Ally’s side, but it’s the least I can do if he is going to make her healthy again. “We’ll be right outside the door. Call out when you are ready, and we’ll come straight in.”

  When he steps up to Ally’s side, I move out the door with great reluctance. I’m leaving the girl I love in the hands of someone else, and even though it is her father, I have never felt more helpless. I lean against the hallway wall and pray while I wait. Please let it all work out okay.

  Hearing voices in the room I stir from my slumber. My lips are dry, and my throat is parched. Sliding my tongue along my bottom lip proves to be no help, and I wonder if whoever is by my bedside will offer a drink to me without me having to find my voice and ask.

  I struggle with the weight of my eyelids, and finally manage to get them to flutter open. The only light comes from a lamp to the side of me. It was daytime last time I was awake, and I have no idea how much time has passed or if it is even the same day.

  My eyes focus on a man I have never met before, and even though my vision is a little blurry, I can still tell he looks exactly like me, or rather I look exactly like him. I blink my dry eyes with difficulty and try to get a better look at him.

  Since I can’t speak to convey how I feel or what I want to ask, I raise my hand with all the strength I can pull together and hold it out towards him. He mirrors my action with his own hand as a single tear rolls down his aging face. “Althea, my baby.” His voice is shaky, but his hand firmly holds up mine. My mind tries to grasp if and why he just called me Althea, but I’m not lucid enough to hold onto the thought.

  I feel choked up inside. Yet, I don’t even have the energy to cry. This overwhelming feeling of meeting who must be my father for the very first time consumes me, and I crave an outlet.

  The fact that this stranger has been missing my entire life no longer matters. He is here now, and I get to know him for however briefly it may be before I leave this world.

  Strong emotion from this encounter drains me, and I drift back into sleep. The last thing I hear before I go under is barely a whisper next to my ear, “I’m going to make it all okay, and I’m here for you now.”

  “Theo, Alex, I’m ready for you.” Jeff steps up to the door and Alex steps around him and into the room. He stops me before I can enter. “Thank you for taking care my girls while I wasn’t here.” I’m pulled into an awkward hug, and I return it; however, I don’t answer him back. Really, what am I meant to say to that? Thanks for killing yourself?

  We slowly pull away from each other, and he takes a deep shuddering breath. I follow him into the room and stand next to Alex, waiting for his instruction of why he needed us in here. Not that I wouldn’t be here regardless, but I’m curious.

  “If Ally is anything like her old man, you might need to hold her down until I am finished healing her. I don’t want her to try and stop me as she becomes more alert and figures out what is going on.”

  I move to her side, and Alex stands by her legs. We both rest our hands on her lightly, ready to restrain her if needed. There is no way I will let her stop this from happening.

  Jeff pulls an envelope out of his pocket and places it on my desk, the name Althea written in bold letters across the front. I have no time to wonder about the unusually beautiful name before the room is filled with an intense light and Ally’s body starts to shake beneath my hands.

  Please God, let this work.

  A red glow dances behind my eyelids and fire flares through my extremities. I’m completely immobilized as one by one little sparks leave my insides through my skin. Each cell of intense heat that is weighing me down takes its turn to leave, making me feel gradually lighter. My chest loosens and I no longer have to fight for air.

  I feel less oppressed by the minute. It is as though I am floating high in the clouds, the sun bathing my body in a pleasant way that I am drawn to. Is this what dying feels like? Am I on my way to Heaven?

  I open my eyes and have to squint against the extreme light. A large pair of hands and a face I can’t quite make out the features of are suspended above me. On closer inspection, I see chocolate hair and pale blue eyes.

  “Dad?” He really was here earlier; that wasn’t a dream. I had put it down to an alternate universe of my life flashing before my eyes, but in slow motion, one where my dad actually cared. Why is he here?

  “Dad?” I ask again. There is no reply. He looks past me, his vision unfocused. I don’t think he even heard me.

  An energy that feels both familiar and foreign at the same time fills me. I can’t quite put my finger on it. The light around me begins to dim, then eventually fades out completely.

  The man I think is my father has gone ghostly pale. His eyes roll to the back of his head, and he falls backwards.

  I gasp and move to sit up and help him, but I’m pulled away, and into a firm secure chest. “It’s alright Ally. Alex has got him. You take it easy; your body isn’t up to moving yet.” Sure enough, when I glance over, Alex is right there helping my unconscious father.

  My hands start to tingle with that pins and needles sensation I know so well, and I wiggle them by my sides.

  “I think it worked,” Theo whispers incredulous. Confused I look up at him, but he won’t meet my eyes. My brain can’t seem to piece together what is going on. What worked?

  Then it clicks. That familiar energy. Different yet the same. I know what it was; it was my talent in reverse.

  “Dad healed me?” Before either of them gets the chance to answer, my hands come to life. Glowing orbs in a room already full of a potent force. Theo’s arms tighten in an effort to restrain me.

  “Do not even think about it Ally.” He doesn’t answer my question, but then again he doesn’t need to, it’s obvious. I’m shocked to find out after all this time that I’m not the only one with this ability. The question that bothers me the most is why? Why did he come back after years of no contact and heal me?

  I open my mouth to ask just that, but the air rushes out of me as Theo lifts me to his chest. “Alex, put him up on the bed and call an ambulance.” Then I’m whisked out of the room.

  I’m still trying to absorb what has just happened, I can’t comprehend it. I lay dumbstruck in Theo’s capable arms. My mind is an endless abyss of tumbling thoughts, and I can’t grasp a single one of them.

  As we approach the living room, I see Mum curled into herself on the couch. Her face is hidden behind a mass of frizzy blonde curls, and she hugs tightly onto a cream coloured cushion. Rachel sits by her side, with her hand stroking my mother’s back.

  “Mum, are you okay?” It’s as if she were on pause and I just pressed fast forward on what is a remote to her life; she scrambles off the couch and towards me. She holds Theo and me both in a tight embrace because he isn’t letting me go. Then she kisses me on the forehead.

  Her eyes are red rimmed and puffy, and it looks as if she has been worrying her bottom lip for at least a solid hour. I can actually see teeth marks indented in to it.

  “Are you? Do you?” Unable to finish the question she gulps and picks up my arms and touches my leg trying to obtain the answers she seeks by examining me herself.

  “I th-think I’m g-going to be okay Mum.” I feel a little shaky and my slight stutter doesn’t go far to reassure her, but she seems t
o be appeased.

  Her head bobs up and down and her bottom lip quivers. “Thank God.” I see relief in her relaxed posture but also an ache of pure longing in her watery, weepy eyes as she gazes towards the room we came from.

  “Alex has called him an ambulance. He is looking after him the best he can. He’s in good hands Carol.” Theo’s explanation causes a sob to break free from Mum’s throat, and then she abruptly bites down on her bottom lip trying to fight it. She snivels in shuddering spurts and turns her head away, hiding her reaction. It’s too late though. I already saw.

  She still cares for him? I don’t understand. He is practically a stranger, and a stranger who abandoned us at that. Why did he come back now and save my life? “I don’t understand.” It’s not a question, more a generalization on the whole complex situation.

  At that moment, Joe comes through the room with two ambulance officers in tow and Mum starts to crumple to the floor. Rachel tries to catch her but ends up being pulled down with her. They are a tangle of limbs, a crying mess on the floor.

  Rachel doesn’t even bother to help Mum up, she just pulls her close and holds her tight, repeating herself over and over, “Shh it’s ok. I’ve got you. Everything will be alright.”

  But that’s just the thing, everything won’t be alright. I may feel indifferent to this man I don’t know, but I’m sad at the thought that I will never get the chance to know him. He must have cared if he came back and sacrificed his life for me, right?

  An emotion other the shock is finally starting to register. My heart rips from its place in my chest and bounces all over the place. Painful thuds beat as the raw realization that this is all happening too fast hits home. If that sudden realization weren’t cruel enough, my father is wheeled out on a stretcher at that exact moment. “Can you put me down now please Theo?” My eyes are glued to my father while I ask, but I can feel him looking intently down at me.