Heart Transplant

Chapter 2

2

During the night, Shona had dreams about the surgery. She had the heart transplant and everything was fine, or rather perfect. Then the donor of the heart came back and haunted her. Then in another dream, her body didn’t accept the heart and died. That’s one of her biggest fears, dying on the operating table. In addition, the third dream was that she was all ready for surgery and the donor decided not to give her heart away. So she had surgery and was still stuck with the same old crappy heart. When Shona woke up she was drenched in sweat and her heart thudded dully. She went downstairs, drank a glass of cold water, and ate some breakfast.  “Hey sugar.” “Morning mom.” “How are you feeling?” “How am I feeling physically or how am I feeling about the transplant?” she sipped at her coffee guiltily. “I had some dreams last night.” “About what?” “Me getting the transplant.” “Oh?” she said trying not to sound pleased.

“None of the results were good.” Shona say putting an end to her joy. “She already signed multiple papers saying she’s more than happy to give it up. She’s dying too honey. She wants to save someone because she can’t save herself.” “Why is she dying?” “Her kidneys are failing and her lungs are pooling blood.” “Oh.” “I’m not trying to push you but it would be a shame to not take this girl’s generous offer.” “I’ll think about it.” Shona says walking away. In her room, she dressed and sat on her bed. She looked out the window. Was she really willing to give this all up? She wanted the pain to stop and her families suffering to end, but if she chose to go through with the surgery would she be able to stop the pain and suffering and still live her life? Her head throbbed from all the confusion she had towards the decision. She brushed her teeth and thought about how scary it was living life knowing you could drop dead at any moment, disrupting the lives of countless people, who either loved you or witnessed you dying.

Everything was shouting ‘take the heart!’, but was it wrong? Was it against humanity? Was it breaking the law? Shona had never dreamed of breaking the law once in her life. Whenever she drove, she did the speed limit. She was an “angel” child as her parents tended to call her, but all she did was cause them pain and worry. What kind of an angel was she?  The doctors said that they had never tested it before, what if it did not work. What if she died? How many people would be devastated? She didn’t even know. Five? Maybe not even that many. She was a lost cause. She’s dying. There was a knock on the bathroom door, and her mom peeked in. “Ty’s here.” Shona finished up and walked downstairs where Ty stood waiting for her. “Wow.” He said when he saw her. “You look amazing.” “Thank you. You don’t look too bad yourself.” He smiled and offered his arm to her. She put her arm through his. “Thank you.” He said. He walked her out to his Cadillac. He held open the door for her, then ran around to the other side and hopped in. the roof fell down immediately after he started the car. “Ready for a joy ride?” Shona smiled for the first time since she had gotten home from the hospital. “Am I ever!” They pulled out of the driveway and headed to the beach roads.

Ever since the cruise ships crashed in the gulf, no one went to these beaches anymore. It turned into a wasteland where gangs and bums hung out. The sun shone bright and the sea breeze felt amazing. The Cadillac reached speeds up to 70-80 mph down the winding roads. Shona sat on the top of the seats and put her hands up in the air. She felt so free and it really took her mind off things. “I believe I can fly!” she shouted into the wind as it whipped past her carrying her voice away. Ty laughed and put a hand on her knee. “Don’t fall.” He teased. Suddenly a big truck came out of nowhere. “Get in your seat!” Ty yelled at her. Shona sat down and clicked her seatbelt. Ty slammed on his breaks and the truck swerved trying to get around us. Shona clutched her seat as she awaited the inevitable collision. When the two cars came in contact, it was all a daze. The truck kept going but they flipped, swerved, and skidded. The Cadillac rolled and Ty hugged Shona close. They ducked down into their seats as the ground came closer to their heads with each roll. Finally, the car planted its four wheels firmly on the ground, and they stopped rolling. Shona wheezed and clutched at her chest. Ty groaned loudly in his unconscious state. Shona couldn’t find a phone and the truck was long gone. “Help!” she tried screaming, but it was no use. She couldn’t get enough air to scream, her desperate cry for help came out as a whine no louder than a whisper.