Phone calls that came past bedtime were never good. Grace almost fell in her race to answer the shrieking ring.

“Hello Ma’am, this is Miss Jacobs, the night nurse; your husband has just been taken to City Memorial by ambulance, it appears he has had a stroke. I’m sorry, I really don’t know any more information; it happened right before I came on shift a half hour ago. Perhaps if you call the hospital they can give you some answers.”

 Grace called a cab and quickly got dressed and out the door just as the taxi pulled up. When she finally settled in, she was sitting next to what was left of her husband. The young resident told her that the MRI showed a major stroke and only time would tell how much damage was done. He was stable, but unconscious; and again, time would tell. She might want to go home; he would be transferred to the CCU at least until he regained consciousness. She could come back tomorrow and that is where he will be, it will be more comfortable for her as well.

Grace, having no one to call at four o’clock in the morning did what the young man said and went home by taxi. She was beginning to feel like she was the next one they would be carrying out of the nursing home, but she was wrong about that; Grace had a full life to lead.

***

Tomorrow was her day off and Belle knew for sure she was going to spend the day out doors. That was her thought as her head touched her pillow; she went to sleep with a smile on her face. There was a light rain tapping a rhythm that was soothing, comforting. 

Belle had a dream sometime during the night. She was facing a wall and getting hit with a switch, then she was grabbed up by rough hands and her panties were pulled off she was a little girl no more than five. Belle awoke sweating feeling dirty and bad. She had a sense of dread she had not felt in a long time. If she thought about it, which she never allowed herself to do, her sense of dread left when her grandfather passed. It never went completely away, but that is when it began to lift.

The rain had stopped. It was muggy, that didn’t help how she felt. Belle showered thinking she could scrub the dream away. She felt a lot better after the shower, but was too restless to sleep. Something felt wrong; when she looked at the time, it was only four o’clock. She had no one to call, even if she did, it was too early.

She picked up a magazine she had found in the trash room sat on her bed and dozed. It was eight AM and someone was outside ringing the manager’s buzzer. Belle placed her cup of tea on the table, went through the hallway to the front, and there outside her door was her friend Grace, looking like she had seen a ghost.

Belle brought Grace into her small apartment. She sat her at the table, put the kettle up to boil, got a cup and teabag and sat across from her friend. Grace looked like she had cried all night.

Grace gave Belle a brief summation of the night from hell and said she just wanted someone to know where she would be. Belle said she would go with her, having no idea what a city hospital, or any medical facility was like. Grace told her she had made some calls to the ladies at her church and they were going to bring Grace some lunch. Belle said no problem and hastily made a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, wrapped it in newspaper and looked over at Grace because she was laughing. “What’s so funny?” “Well to tell you the truth,” replied Grace, “I haven’t seen anyone use newspaper to carry a lunch since I was a child. I think the next time you go to the market; I had better come along and show you what even poor people use to pack their lunch. Come to think of it, I bet no one has ever shown you how to use a market have they?”

Belle blushed and Grace immediately realized she had embarrassed her friend and said, “We all have to learn things like that at some point, it’s nothing to feel bad about.”

Belle told Grace she had a really hard time at the market that where she came from everybody grew what they needed then traded their extra for what they didn’t have. The small kitchen and the huge market made it even harder for her to manage.

If Belle thought the super market was overwhelming, the look on her face when they entered the hospital through the emergency room was pure shock. The hospital wing Grace had been directed to was past the emergency room and then down a long gray hallway with signs that read x-ray in progress do not enter, or MRI every three doorways had some kind of sign and whirring noises were everywhere. Grace turned back to make sure Belle was still right behind her and felt a sick feeling come over her. What had she been thinking letting a naïve child like her come here? Grace took Belle’s hand and said, don’t mind those signs and noises, they are not part of our life honey, just part of a hallway. By then they had reached the CCU. Grace still holding Belle’s hand pushed the buzzer. She identified herself and said Belle was her Granddaughter.

Belle blushed, Grace whispered, “Only next of kin in here darling.”

 The CCU waiting room was another world; hushed sounds, just monitors beeping, otherwise very quiet.  The waiting room had plush carpets, big comfy chairs, low tables with magazines a television set on the wall, and a small radio. Grace took Belle to another room where there was a sink, refrigerator and microwave. The furniture was sparse, just a table, four chairs and a cabinet with playing cards and scrabble games, and a few jigsaw puzzles. The shelf above the sink had a basket of tea, instant coffee, packets of creamer and sugar and a few coffee mugs. Grace asked Belle if she would like to watch television while she checked on her husband. Of course Belle said yes, then Grace handed her the remote control. 

***

Joseph got something from Jessica he had never known before, TLC. She was warm and loving and funny. Turned out she knew how to cook if she had food around, and Joseph had no problem keeping food in her house. She even got to meet Joseph’s grandfather, and understood when he wanted to give him quality time.

Joe didn’t expect this kindness, he really didn’t know what to do with it; the old man noticed the change in Joseph, less sullen, more hopeful, downright cheerful come to think of it and began to put the puzzle together. He wasn’t the least bit surprised when Joe came to him for advice. 

Joseph, his Grandson, gave him the kind of joy he hadn’t experienced since his partner had passed away. Lately, it had been on his mind because he had begun to think of Joseph as his only living heir. He planned to wait awhile longer before broaching the subject, he wanted to see Joe go back to school and finish what he had started, a life. When he began counseling Joe on the ways of love and friendship, he managed to slip in a word or two about going back to school. He told Joseph he was not the same person he was when he left school the last time and even if it meant starting from scratch. He knew, just knew, Joe could do it.

Joe was really beginning to think he fell into a different world; a world where people approved of him, cared about him.  For the first time, in a long time, he felt some hope about life.

He told the old man that he had finished getting his law degree in prison; telling the truth was the least he could for someone who had believed in him.  He needed to take the bar exam, and hopefully get into an internship with a law firm. .

He checked his watch, Jessica was getting off after dark and he liked to pick her up. Even though she worked in the CCU, almost everyone knew him and let him sit in the CCU lounge. He was a few minutes early and Jess was running a little late so he wandered into the TV room to catch the tail end of a game.

When Belle saw Joseph, she smiled from the inside out. Joseph didn’t even recognize her; she had changed so much since their first fleeting glimpse. Here sat a very different woman then the one peeking from her door.

Belle said, “You are the young man from apartment 3F if I’m not seeing things”.

Joseph answered hesitantly with a puzzled look, “Well yes.”

Belle told him who she was and Joe’s smile reflected hers.

They each explained why they were there. Then Belle handed him the remote control and told him she had never used one before. Finding that hard to believe in the 21^st century, he patiently showed her how it worked then asked if she minded if he checked the scores. Belle had no idea what he was referring to and said yes; without too much confidence.

He asked if there was something else she wanted to see.

“Oh no,” she replied, “go ahead. I’ll be here a lot longer than you.”

 She watched in amazement when the screen lit up, not as big as the movie theater but just as exciting. Joe was totally engrossed in the task at hand and fortunately for her did not see her mouth drop open in awe. Seeing those men on screen felt like she was looking out a window, except it was brighter, clearer, amazing.

When Joe left with Jessica, Belle found her way around the channels and thought how she must find out how one gets to have one of these in their home. She would ask Grace.

Joe told Jess the story of the building manager and how she seemed to come from another century. Jess had no real contact with her but mentioned to Joe the fragile state the patient Belle was waiting to hear about was in. She told Joe she would check in with her in the morning.

When Grace came back out to the waiting room, Belle was watching an infomercial, not too much else was on after 1AM. Grace sat down and began to cry, Belle had no experience comforting another person, but instinctively, she took Grace in her arms and held her. Grace had lost her husband. He passed away about an hour ago and was in the hospital mortuary.

Fortunately, when he was younger, he took care of both of their final arrangements and had everything paid for. Grace told Belle she would call the funeral parlor in the morning.