CHAPTER SEVENTY-EIGHT: Not His Child

The earth seemed to stop rotating as Scott sat in the pediatrician's office an hour after leaving Zara's house. The doctor's words kept echoing in his head as he stared at him.

"I'm afraid Tommy's good kidney has failed. And his liver is not doing well too. For now, he can survive on dialysis, but a transplant needs to be done."

Scott had thought Tommy fainted due to stomach pain since they had spent the morning binging on different foods and snacks. On the way, he beat himself up for that. Little did he know that the problem was bigger than he had imagined.

"When can you do the transplant?" he finally asked, holding chunks of his hair tightly.

The pediatrician sighed. "About three months."

"Three months? That's too long!"

"I hate to break it to you, Mr. Brown. But there's a waiting list. Tommy has to be placed on that waiting list. Until it's his turn, there's nothing I can do. The only way the transplant can be done early is if he gets a direct donor, as in, someone who is willing