Coffee & Flowers

|1.|

"Vanessa Charles here to see—"

"Sign in, please," a receptionist cut me off, unbothered. Her thin fingers tapped away at the desktop monitor that clearly occupied her attention.

I nodded in compliance, then picked up the chain-bound pen, and carefully printed my name under the visitors column. I started to make my way down the brightly lit hallway, and as I walked, I let the smell of disinfectant distract me from the reason I was there.

Busy nurses sped past me in their usual haste. I did my best to stay out of their way, since their faces always looked so worried. A husband stood off to the side, a look of anxiousness and disbelief written across his face as a doctor quietly spoke to him. Two little boys played with toy planes, while their mother cried into their father's shoulder. An elderly couple was trying to make their way out in all the madness. It was always so fascinating to watch people...to study their emotions from an outsider's perspective. I've always wondered if anyone had ever studied me or found me interesting.

The elevator was now visible in the distance, in between the crowds of people who all had their own agenda. I hurried myself a little more, but in my focused determination, I didn't even pay any mind to the unaware person about to walk straight into me. I stumbled back after the fact, regaining my composure. I almost dropped the contents of my hands: my binder and sunflower. It took me a moment to realize that my unintentional attacker was talking to me, as I was still focused on getting to the elevator.

"Shit, forgive me. I wasn't looking where I was...going..." her frantic words trailed off as she studied my face intently, and drew her eyebrows together. Suddenly, a smile spread across her pink face and she exclaimed, "Vanessa? Vanessa Charles?"

I smiled politely and let my expression do all the talking, as I started to look confused.

"Angela," she beamed. "Angela Golden?" She looked a little embarrassed, probably thinking that she had the wrong person. My look only grew more inquisitive, to her dismay. I had no earthly idea who this girl was. "We were in the same daycare as kids. We used to sing Britney Spears together and annoy everyone else in the building?" For a couple moments, I stood there unable to completely remember the vague picture she put in my head. But then it hit me. It was as if someone had just dusted off an old shelf in my brain and slowly turned the lightbulb on.

"Oh! I almost didn't recognize you without your uneven bangs and your 2 front teeth missing." A lot of the things that happened while my mother was still around were hard to remember.

Angela still had a baby face that just lit up when she smiled. It was absolutely contagious, as I caught myself smiling just as wide back at her. This short, beautifully chubby girl in a white shirt with her sleeves rolled up, and black jeans just stood there looking at me, and it felt like I had just found my long-lost sister. Her deep brown eyes glistened under her black box-framed glasses, lighting up her rosy red freckled cheeks.

"How are you? What're you doing here? I haven't seen you since you left when we were six!" My smile faded a little, I was hoping she wouldn't notice. It's been twelve years...today not only marks twelve years since the day I was taken out of daycare to go to the hospital, but also twelve years since...the accident.

"Just visiting," I replied, keeping my warm expression. Her gaze drifted to behind me for a moment, then suddenly she nodded and mouthed 'OK'.

"Sorry, my girlfriend is waiting. It was so good to see you again! I hope it's not the last time!" She walked away, leaving some of her good mood behind with me, which I so desperately needed.

As she walked away, I continued my journey to the elevator. As I was approaching, I noticed an elevator already open. I broke out into a half jog and called out to the woman who occupied it to hold the door. Unfortunately, she seemed to care less about my request, thus letting the door close just moments before I got there.

"You've got to be kidding me," I panted under my breath. I knew I was late, but I checked my phone anyways.

5:06 PM.

'Fantastic!', I thought. '6 minutes late.' Taking a deep breath, I threw my head back in defeat, and checked my phone again to make sure I saw the correct time. Though I wasn't surprised to see that it was exactly the same, I was still just as disappointed.

"Hey, uhh," I heard a voice call, breaking me out of my silent brooding. I looked up and saw a guy, probably my age, with an arm extended against the wall to hold the doors open to a neighbor elevator. His expression looked impatient.

Quickly, I stepped into the narrow space, finding my way to the back right corner. I exchanged a friendly glance and half-nod with him as an expression of my gratitude. The doors closed, but we weren't moving. Both of us stood there awkwardly for a solid 5 seconds.

"Um, floor?" He asked, rather rudely.

"Oh," I smiled, but inside I felt so stupid. "Right...seven please." He pushed the corresponding button, and then his.

The front and back walls were mirrors, making the cool illusion of a never-ending hallway, which always amused me. I was examining the logo of the hospital printed on the mirror in front and imagining myself walking through the "hallway", when his eyes briefly met mine. We both looked away quickly, but it just sparked curiosity for me. After a couple of seconds, I looked back up to study the rest of him as he occupied himself with his phone.

His face looked tired, and not just because of the huge bags under his eyes. He was carrying a tray of coffee with him, but only three cups. He held the tray where the fourth slot was empty. He wore a grey shirt and light wash jeans that were rolled up at the end. It looked like he had slept in that outfit, but judging by his worn expression and unkempt stubble, it didn't seem that he was very well acquainted with sleep, at the moment. His physique implied that he obviously took care of himself, on a good day, at least. His auburn hair was disheveled and almost covered his deep bluish-gray eyes.

I guess he felt me staring, because he slowly looked up again, resulting in me nearly giving myself whiplash as I craned my neck the other direction. The elevator made a ding sound and the doors opened to welcome an elderly woman with a thick German accent. She walked slowly with a cane, and made her way to the right of me, a friendly smile plastered on her face.

"Ten, please dear," she requested, sweetly. The guy pushed the button and we waited for the doors to close. I quickly glanced at what floor we were on before the doors closed. The number outside the doors read 6.

A couple more uncomfortable seconds passed by, and the ding of the elevator got my attention, as the doors opened and I stepped into the open. Not before stealing one more glimpse of whoever that guy was. As I walked down the hallway, my mind wandered to he possibilities of why he was so tired...who he was here to visit...who the other cups of coffee were for. It was a short adventure, as the room I've become so familiar with was now right in front of me. I opened it slowly, the quiet buzz of the hallway fading from my ears as I stepped in and the door closed behind me.

A thin woman lay quietly, in the exact same position as she was when I left her. The beat of her heart was heard by a high-pitched beep. It was almost relaxing in a way, but never stressed me out more. As long as I heard that beep, she was okay. But it was the feeling of it stopping at any point that made me want to hug her and never let go.

I took my seat in the chair next to her bed, and set my things on her bedside tray. I replaced the sunflower from 2 days ago with the one I had presently, and opened my binder. I thumbed through the pages until I found my latest story.

"Are you ready, Mom?"