Page 140 of Time To Learn

She blinks and nods quickly.

“Of course. Let me just find his information foryou.”

“Thankyou.”

I breathe a small smile of relief and look down at Ailith. She grins up at me, squeezing my hand, and despite the severity of the situation, I can’t help but smile softly back at her. In the back of my mind, I make a mental note, though—I need to have a little chat with her about lying to grown-ups.

“Right, here we go,” the nurse starts. Eager to get to Kristian, I lean down as she scribbles something on a notepad and tears off the paper. Pencil in hand, she points at the ward number she’s scribbleddown.

“If you go to this floor, you’ll find his room. He’s doing fine, but Doctor Macintyre should be there. He’ll be able to tell youmore.”

Grateful, I look down at the paper before I raise my eyes and smile ather.

“Thankyou.”

She nods once and the smile that forms on her lips seems more genuine thistime.

“You’re welcome.”

I breathe a deep sigh as Mum takes the note from my other hand and, flanked by her and Ailith, we walk to the lift. As soon as the doors close behind us, unease and worry play havoc with my insides. As if she can sense my distress, Mum squeezes myhand.

“Remember what your dad used to say, Laura?”

I frown as I turn my head to face her. The small smile playing on her lips confusesme.

“Dad said many things,” I answer softly.

She purses herlips.

“True. But the one I’m referring to is, Don’t be scared to feel afraid for your loved ones—fear makes you appreciate love, and, above all, it makes you stronger in theend.”

I shake my head, exasperated at her words. Or, rather, my dad’s.

“Really, Mum? I never understood what he meant with thatone.”

Her eyes gentle, and her words confuse me evenmore.

“You will. In time, lass, you will, and that time will probably come a whole lot sooner than you expect.”

I open my mouth to ask her what the heck she’s on about, but I don’t get the chance as I feel the soft glide of the lift when it stops. The doors open, bringing me back to the present with a loud thump of my heart, and like a puppet on a string, I follow Ailith blindly as she drags meout.

“Look.”

Mum points to our left and I follow her line of sight to the end of the hall. My heartbeat increases even more when my eyes land on Alex and Lise, Kristian’s aunt, talking with who I assume must be Doctor Macintyre. Ailith pulls harder on my hand and I gulp a lungful of air as light-headedness makes my eyes blur. I blink, trying to push the fear away and let her lead me tothem.

Seeing Lise’s calm smile at the doctor as he walks away diminishes my anxieties a little, and when her eyes fall on us and light up with recognition, the heaviness in my limbs lessens.

“Hey,” she greets us softly as we stop in front of her. Her shoulders slump as if she’s been holding on to a heavy weight for a longtime.

I wet my lips and lock my knees in place, afraid I’ll topple on the floor.

“Hello. How ishe?”

She takes a deep breath and crosses her arms over her chest.

“Well, he has a cut on the back of his head, and a light concussion, but the x-rays show there’s no damage or anything else we need to worry about.” She blows out a breath. “I have to admit that after the doctor told us he was going to be fine, I didn’t hear much of the medical lingo.”

I smile, knowing exactly what she means.