Because of Him

15

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          As I approached the entrance, the automatic doors slid open, and a gush of cool air blew my hair back. I walked in, looking around the children's hospital.

          The walls were so pale and depressing, except for the occasional Barbie and Cars stickers stuck on the walls which were meant to lighten the mood, but how happy could you be if you spent most of your time here?

"Hi, may I help you?"

I turned in the direction of the voice. My eyes landed on a young woman–the receptionist–who was sitting behind the front desk. I approached her, placing my hands on the edge of the desk and smiled shyly. "I'm here to visit someone, but I don't have their room number."

"Can I have their name?"

          "Well, I don't know her last name, but her first name is Katie." I realized then how unprepared I was for this visit.

          Her eyes instantly light up with recognition. She reached over to the side of the desk where she had some picture frames, probably of her friends and family, and held it up for me to see. "Is this her?"

          Katie was sitting up in a hospital bed, clutching a caramel-colored teddy bear by the neck with her arm, grinning widely at the camera.

          I smiled. "Yeah, that's her."

          "She's such a sweetheart, isn't she?" She smiled down at the picture. "Her room number is 207, on the second floor, to the right of the elevators."

          After thanking her I walked over to the elevators and pushed my finger to the button with the little arrow that pointed up. I reached the second floor within seconds and turned to the right, searching for room 207.

          203, 205, 207.

          I stopped in front of the door and glanced down at the small whiteboard hanging on the doorknob. Katie's name was written in messy handwriting, and a purple flower was drawn next to it, sloppily.

          I smiled faintly before lifting my hand and knocking softly.

          "Come in!"

          I turned the handle and slowly entered the room. I saw Mindy first, who stood up from a chair beside the hospital bed where I saw Katie was sitting with her teddy bear in her lap.

          "Lauren!" Katie's face lit up.

          "Hi," I smiled, closing the door behind me.

          "Lauren," Mindy smiled and walked over to me. "I'm glad you stopped by." She outstretched her arms and brought me into a hug. I looked around awkwardly but lifted my arms and tried to be casual. When I pulled away, I felt guilt in the pit of my stomach.

          "I would've come sooner, but I left the paper with the address in my pocket and totally forgot about it." I explained.

          "It's okay, Lauren. You're here now!" Katie said happily.

          I smiled and walked over to the chair beside her. I sat down and leaned forward, folding my arms on the edge of her bed. "How've you been?"

          "I'm good and getting better, right, Mommy?" She looked over to her mom with an expecting smile.

          I turned to face her and caught a slight change in her facial expression. For a split second, her smile faded a little and her eyes weren't as bright anymore, but she put a wide smile on her face and nodded. "Right, Sweetie."