Chapter Ten

Ruby

It had been a month since I found out about Mom. Since then, she has had a double mastectomy. It meant both of her breasts had to be removed.

Mom’s boss, Mr. Grant junior, heard about her having cancer. He sent Mom to the private hospital here in Lakewood, so she could have her operation straight away.

He even paid for her to have reconstructive surgery. Mom was pretty sure that there wasn’t a health care policy when she signed her contract, but her boss insisted that the company would take care of all the medical bills.

Mom made a friend while she was in the hospice. His name was Aiden, and he was the doctor Mr. Grant had flown in to help Mom. They’ve been talking on the phone a lot and I overheard mom inviting him to come with us to Washington.

He seemed nice from what I could gather. I had met him quite a few times at the hospital and also when he called round to the house to check on Mom and cook us dinner. He looked a little like Chris Hemsworth, the hot actor who played Thor, but there was no way that I would ever tell him that. I wondered if my mom liked him, as in ‘fancied him’ or whether she just wanted to be friends.

She seemed to giggle a lot when they spoke on the phone. I guess he’s kind of cute. And now it looked like Thor was coming along to Regionals.

I stayed at Sarah’s place when Mom went into the hospital. She had been resting for the past few weeks, and I have been helping more by doing chores.

She’s still got to keep going back for treatment to make sure the cancer has gone. The doctor said she was lucky to find out when she did, and that they had caught it before it spread.

I wanted to give up on Regionals, but Mom wouldn’t let me. It worried me that all this was too much for her, straight after her operation. But she said I was going, even if she had to drag me there kicking and screaming. It was the day before we traveled, and I was already plagued with nerves.

“Have you packed everything that you need?” Mom asked.

She had been loitering around outside my bedroom door. No doubt trying to see what I had arranged.

I was struggling to make the suitcase close. I had resorted to sitting and bouncing on top of it, pulling in desperation at the zipper.

“I think so? I can’t get the case to close though,” I huffed.

As soon as I gave her the green light, she was in my room and all over that case like a kid who’d been offered free candy.

“Here, let me check what you’ve packed.” She practically lunged for my luggage.

I huffed in frustration as she began undoing all of my progress. I flung my hands up in irritation, observing her take my entire life out of the suitcase.

“Mom, what are you doing? I need that,” I complained. “Mom!” I protested, seeing her unpack my things onto my bed.

There go my UGG boots and my second pair of Converse. Ugh! Why is she leaving me with one pair of shoes? Wait! Three pairs of skinny jeans and just one clean shirt for each day? No! I require at least five more extra shirts. What if I spill something over me? Oh, thanks; at least she packed fresh underwear to see me through the week.

The way she was culling through my stuff, it was a wonder I would have anything left to wear.

“You don’t need all of it. You’re only going for a week, Ruby. You’ve packed your entire wardrobe. There’s no way you’re going to wear those clothes. Just think of all the laundry I will have to do when we get back,” Mom explained in her typical Mom voice.

She was practical-minded and constantly thought ahead. She always said that I took it for granted how the laundry got done.

All I knew was that if I dropped my dirty laundry in the zone of the washer, which was right in front of it, that it somehow, by magic, miraculously turned up clean in my wardrobe again. Just as if the house-elves visited us during the night and washed it all.

“Go say goodbye to Storm, while I repack your case,” Mom mumbled, busying herself refolding all of my crumpled up clothes.

Hmhm ... Just as I expected. She had been itching to get me out of the way, just so I couldn’t see what she planned on packing for me.

I’ll be in for a surprise once we get to Washington. I will have to make do with whatever mix and match, thrown together outfits Mom thought looked cute. I’d have to hope and pray that whatever she chose would go with the one choice of shoes I could take.

Slumping down each step, I muttered under my breath about ‘how she better not dress me like a clown.’ To which, I heard her reply. “I can hear you, young lady!”

My eyes widened at Mom’s supersonic hearing.

I rounded the corner and caught Storm creeping in through the back door, in stealth mode.

“What have you been up to, big guy?” I asked, eyeing with suspicion.

“You better not have been digging up Mom’s vegetable patch again. I know it was you,” I spoke in a condescending tone, pointing an accusing finger at him.

His tongue lolled out of the corner of his mouth, giving the impression that he was laughing.

“You going to miss me, while I’m gone?” I asked, getting down on one knee so I could cuddle him.

“You smell like men’s cologne. How the hell is that possible?” I sniffed his fur, wrinkling my nose.

“Hm, did somebody fuss you while you were outside, huh? Was it the mailman? You’re too darn cute, Storm. That’s your problem,” I told him, ruffling his fur affectionately.

I let out a sad sigh, overthinking everything that had gone on over the past month. Storm nuzzled into my neck and I felt him inhale.

“You always seem to know when something’s bothering me, don’t you?” I mumbled. My voice cracked with emotion.

I cleared my throat to make me sound more like my usual self.

“I don’t think it’s right that Mom travels to Washington. I really don’t. I guess it’s selfish of me to ask her to do that, but you know what she’s like.”

Storm gave out a groan and huffed.

“And what if I’m not good enough?” I confided.

The anxiety had been building for days. I was so nervous, I couldn’t eat or sleep.

“Everybody’s looking to me as the captain to get us through to the final. Can you imagine that, Storm? To have everybody counting on you, and you being responsible for everyone in the team. It’s a lot of pressure. I just don’t know if I’m good enough.” I let it all out.

It always made me feel better, telling Storm all of my worries. I’ve never understood why, but it seemed as if he listened, and he wouldn’t judge. No matter what, he’d never see me as weak or pathetic. He was my dog, and I felt safe offloading onto him.

Storm wandered over to the fireplace and sat up straight. His head turned to where a framed photo of Mom and me was positioned in pride of place on top of the mantle.

I walked over and picked it up. The memory of, when and where, it was taken hit me with a strong feeling of nostalgia. I was eight when it was taken. I’d just won first place in my very first competition. Mom was so proud of me and told me all along that she had every faith in me and that I could do it.

I doubted myself then too. That was my problem. I lacked self-confidence. I placed the photo back down where it belonged.

“You’re right, Storm. I’m going to make her proud.”