Tree of Life

Book I Chapter 04

TREE OF LIFE BOOK I

CHAPTER 04

The next morning, Julian got up, got dressed and bustled into the kitchen as usual. “Did we get any calls last night? I mean, like after I went to bed?”

Mom was still making sandwiches for lunch that day. “No. Who’d you call?”

“Nobody.”

His mom stopped. Turning to him, she squared her hands on her hips. “Julian, you know you aren’t supposed to call. The doctor said…”

“I wanna go see him.”

“We’ve been over this. He’s been worse these last few months. The doctor said…”

“I don’t care what the doctor said.” The room was still. Julian reached up and adjusted his glasses. “What if the doctors don’t know everything? There’s stuff out there, maybe new stuff, that maybe doctors don’t know about yet, Mom. It’s been two months. I want to see him.”

“I’ll call the doctors and see if…”

He grabbed his sandwiches off the counter and left, slamming the door behind him as he went.

~~~

While waiting for the elevator, Julian glanced back and saw his neighbour from down the hall, a young man named Daniel. He was all bent up trying to balance three cardboard boxes in a stack in his right arm, while reaching out his left to lock up his apartment door at the same time. He managed to get the door shut, but the box on top slipped off and tumbled to the ground. It busted open and odds and ends cascaded all over the floor around him.

“Dammit!”

Julian rushed over and began to help him pick up the pieces. “Hey, Daniel.”

“Oh, Julian! You’re a life saver!”

As the two continued to clean up the mess, Julian noticed there were labels on all the boxes—kitchen, dining room and den. “So, I guess you’re finally moving out.”

“I was. I mean, I am. Still. I’ll be gone in a couple of weeks. It’s a slow process.”

The two put the last few things back in the box. Daniel sighed. He sat back on the floor and put his back to the wall. “Man, I’m exhausted.” He turned to Julian. “So, how’ve you been? I haven’t seen you since…like the holidays.”

Julian nodded. “All right. I guess.”

Daniel glanced toward Julian’s door. “What’s the matter? ‘Mom trouble’?” He smiled.

Julian smiled back. “You don’t miss much, do you? Must be because you’re a fancy doctor now and all…”

They laughed.

Daniel had lived down the hall from Julian for as long as he could remember. Daniel was like an older brother to him. Over the years, he always helped Julian with his homework whenever he needed it. For free. Julian’s mom really appreciated that part. Daniel was smart in school. In college, he applied to Medicine and got in. He finished some time ago and now he’s been a doctor for about a year and half. He’s finally put some money together and that’s why he was moving out, getting a place a little nicer, a little closer to the hospital where he worked.

“It must be nice, being a doctor.” Julian was still teasing. “You must be swimming in the money now.”

Daniel didn’t laugh, only smiled. “Listen, Julian. I know what a lot of people think. And I’ve heard what your mom tells you sometimes and that she wants you to be a doctor too, mostly because she wants you to be in a career where you can make a lot of money and have a better life for yourself, and there’s nothing wrong with that. But let me tell you this. If money is the only reason you have for becoming a doctor, you won’t last very long in this business.”

“So, why do you do it then? I mean, like you, yourself?”

Daniel shrugged. He stared at the wall. “Me, I like paediatrics. Even though a lot of times, I’m up all night, running around the hospital, looking up results for this, that and the other, and kids on the whole ward are screaming their heads off and their parents are driving me crazy…”

“Sounds awful.”

Daniel turned to him and smiled. “Doesn’t it?”

“Then why?”

“I don’t know.” He returned his gaze to the far wall. “Sometimes I really don’t know why. And it’s not like it doesn’t take a lot out of me. Sometimes, it really exhausts me.” He chuckled. “You ever feel like you’re completely drained? Like there’s nothing left in you to give?”

Julian nodded.

“And then you turn and look at your patient. That little kid who’s hurt his leg, or going through chemo and he’s lost all his hair. There’s something in the look of a little child. Something in their eyes. And you know you’ve made their pain a little less. And they feel better. Maybe just a little bit. And it’s like nothing else you’ve ever experienced. Nothing else…” He turned to Julian. “…and that’s when you know you have to be a doctor. There is no other choice. That’s who you have to be.”

Julian nodded. He smiled. He remembered yesterday when he was with Brian.

Daniel got up. He went to grab the boxes.

Julian stood too. “Here, let me help you.”

Julian happened to look and saw that the doctor had a bruise on his arm. “How’d you get that?”

Daniel glanced down at the injury. “I was moving some heavy boxes yesterday, and I must have wrenched out my elbow. Didn’t even feel it at the time.”

“Elbow?” Julian pointed to the bruise further down the forearm. “So, how come the bruise is over here, and not…” He indicated the elbow. “…there?”

Daniel smiled. “Oh, that’s just how the human body works. I bet you didn’t know that, did you? Sometimes, when one part of the body gets hurt, the blood from the broken vessels that seeps out, that is, the bruise, actually gathers somewhere else, away from the actual site of injury. Pretty neat, huh?”

Julian smiled and nodded.

~~~

Julian helped Daniel take his boxes to his car. For a reward, Daniel drove him to school.

At lunch, Julian finished his food early and rushed into the library. He got on line. He confirmed the information that Daniel had told him. He also read up on some other topics, like orthopaedics, leg length discrepancies and also mental illness, schizophrenia in particular. He’d never looked these up before, because he had always avoided thinking about becoming a doctor. Probably because his mom had always pushed him to be one. Now he sucked up the information from the screen like a vampire because all of a sudden, it was just so interesting to him. Wow! But of course, he would never tell his mom that, not if she tried to pry it from him with a crowbar.

He met Brian after school. He led him to the washroom. They checked the stalls. Nobody was there.

“Does your ankle still hurt?” Julian fished out the baggie and the twig from his pocket.

Brian nodded. “I’m all right, though. I’m sure it’ll be better tomorrow.”

“I wanna try something. Take off your shoe.” Julian went over to the sink. Like before, he worked up a wad of the paste as Brian slipped off his shoe and then his sock.

“What? Are we doing that again?”

Julian nodded. “I think we missed some spots yesterday.” He rubbed it on. And this time, not just the edge of Brian’s left foot where the bruise had been, but also over the entire ankle, and then the rest of the calf as well, just to be sure. Like before, the area heated up. It glowed.

It took about thirty seconds.

“Wow. It’s working.” Brian worked his ankle forward and back. Side to side. He jumped up and down on it.

“Stop…” Julian had a little bit left. He slathered it over his friends left knee and that used it all up. He went over to the sink to clean up. “How’s that feel?”

“Wow. Good. Amazing! Like no pain at all. And not even that, it’s like I feel…stronger! This is really good.” Brian rushed to get his shoe back on. “Let’s go play some ball!”