Chapter three

The hospital's corridor reverberate with sounds of rushing footsteps, beeping machines and urgent page announcements. The atmosphere is charged with urgency and intensity. The air is thick with antiseptic and disinfectant smells, punctuated with the aroma of hospital food and fresh flowers. In the waiting areas, loved ones pace anxiously, their eyes fixed on the clock and their phones waiting for news on their loved ones conditions. Tammy and Aunt Kathy were in the waiting area, they were restless. Tammy's eyes widen as she darted frantically around the room. Tears prick at the corners of her eyes threatening to spill over as her mind races with worse case scenarios.

"Tammy." Aunt Kathy called out but Tammy didn't respond because she was absent minded.

"Tammy!" Aunt Kathy called out again, this time Tammy was startled.

"Come here dear, come have a seat." Tammy reluctantly walked to her aunty and sat down. Aunt Kathy wrapped her arms around Tammy trying to comfort her.

"Be calm, everything will be alright." Aunt Kathy said calmly.

"How do you expect me to be calm aunty?" Tammy said with her voice seized by panic, trembling and hesitant, barely above a whisper "we haven't heard anything from the doctor since dad got into the emergency room."

"That doesn't mean we should panic, everything will be fine. Before you know it, the doctor will be out here with us." Aunty Kathy said empathetically.

As Aunt Kathy was speaking, the doctor approached them.

"Hello, I'm Doctor Jones, the doctor in charge of your father's case and I have some news. Let's go to my office please." Doctor Jones said as he introduced himself.

Tammy and Aunt Kathy looked at each other, their eyes locked and the silence around them, thick with inquiry. They both walked in silence behind Doctor Jones as he led them to his office.

"Please sit" Doctor Jones requested. Tammy and Aunt Kathy pulled the chairs and sat quietly.

"Miss T...uhm..." Doctor Jones stuttered

"Tammy, my name is Tammy and this is my aunt Kathy" she cut in.

"Miss Tammy, your dad has been suffering from a severe heart condition called coronary artery disease. It means that he has been suffering from a blocked artery that reduced the flow of blood, that was what triggered his heart attack". Doctor Jones explained.

Tammy almost in tears asked, "what can we do doctor? My dad has to survive this".

"He has been able to manage it with medication these past years, I can suggest a heart transplant" he replied.

Tammy's face turned pale and her eyes welled up with tears, her cheeks lost their warmth, now a dull lifeless gray. Aunt Kathy's eyes grew wide with fear and her breath caught in her throat. They turned to look at each other and then look at the doctor. Doctor Jones gave them a minute to digest what he had suggested.

"Doctor?" Aunt Kathy called out, "can we get back to you on this?"

"Sure! Of course but you have to be fast about it" he advised.

"Alright. Meanwhile, can we see my brother?" She asked politely.

"Yes, you can. He should be awake already" he gave permission.

Tammy sat there lost in thoughts. Her body was present at the doctor's office but her mind was quite far not until her aunt Kathy tapped her.

"Let's go and see your father" she said as she helped Tammy up.

The doctor then called a nurse to take them to the ward where Mr Cole is. While walking along the corridor, Tammy and Aunt Kathy didn't say a word to each other. Suddenly, the hospital attendants passed by them with someone on the stretcher.

"Ryan?" Aunt Kathy whispered.

"How can you still be thinking about that marriage after what the doctor just said?" Tammy asked in a frustrated tone.

"No, Tammy. Those people just passed with Ryan on that stretcher" she explained.

Tammy just wanted to see her father but after what aunt Kathy had said she couldn't just ignore it, she had to confirm it herself.

"Go ahead aunty, I'll be with you shortly". She said as she departed.

Tammy followed them to see where he was taken and then proceeded to the reception to inquire about what really happened.

"Hi. The man that was just rushed in here..."

"Ryan?" The receptionist cut in.

"Yes, Ryan. What happened to him?" Tammy asked with keen interest.

"He was involved in a car crash. A truck hit the vehicle he was in and his friend was the driver. His friend just sustained some minor injuries but Ryan is in a bad condition" the receptionist replied.

Tammy gasped and her countenance fell. She felt really sorry for Ryan, even though she doesn't want to get married to him forcefully, she doesn't wish anything bad for him. She began to have flashbacks about how her mother died, she became clouded up with thoughts.

"Are you okay?" The receptionist asked seeing that Tammy became saddened by what she had said.

"Yes, I'm okay thank you" she said forcing a smile.

After Tammy confirmed what had happened to Ryan, she went ahead to see her father. On entering her father's room, she sensed tension in the air as though her father and aunty were having a deep conversation before she interrupted.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything" Tammy asked giving them a suspicious look.

"Nothing at all dear." Aunt Kathy replied as she stood up to excuse herself from the room.

Unknown to Tammy, her aunty already broke the news of Ryan's incident to her father. They were already discussing the way forward since Ryan was involved in a car crash and they needed redemption as soon as possible. So they quickly kept quiet when Tammy came in. Tammy walked up to her father and sat beside him.

"How are you feeling daddy?" holding his hands, she asked calmly.

"I'm feeling great" he replied, trying so hard to avoid an eye contact with Tammy because he knew he wasn't being honest.

"Daddy really, why didn't you tell me about your condition? Didn't you think I deserve to know?" she asked with concern in her voice.

"I didn't want you to worry at all my Tammy, I didn't want you to always look at me pitiably. I wanted you to live your life freely without the thought of your dying father" Mr Cole said remorsefully.

"How can you say that daddy? You're my father and when did worrying about my father become a crime? You didn't tell me but I found out anyway and I'll still worry about you" Tammy ascertained.

Mr Cole smiled faintly and apologized "I'm sorry for keeping such from you".

"It's okay daddy, we'll get through this together" she said as she smiled back.

"So I heard Ryan's in this hospital, won't you go see him?" Mr Cole asked teasing Tammy.

Tammy gave a disgusted look at the mention of Ryan's name but deep down she had thought of going to see him.

"Dad no, don't do that" she said in a disgusted tone.

"But Tammy, have you thought about the marriage? Now that I need surgery and can't afford it, are you still going to harden your heart?" he asked calmly

"Dad, Ryan is in a bad condition as we speak, bringing this up right now is irrelevant" she replied.

Tammy wasn't ready for the marriage conversation, she knew her father was only going to keep talking about it if she remains in the room with him. She became uneasy and wanted to leave.

"Dad let's talk about this some other time, you need to rest. I'll come see you later" she said as she kissed his forehead and proceeded to the door.

Mr Cole smiled and decided not to push any further, he wanted to take it easy with her. Tammy opened the door and as she stepped out she felt a tight grip on her arm, she looked up scared and uttered shakily "who are you?".