Chapter Three

The Unexpected Call

Lila

It had been a few weeks of smooth running at my new work of place. I had not seen my boss in a few days he was always in meetings out of the office which made my work easier. 

Today was a big day for both my boss and the company. He was supposed to close a really big client he had been working on for the last two weeks.

I wanted everything to work perfectly. The office buzzed around me, phones ringing, colleagues murmuring in hushed tones and the occasional hums and laughter all around me. 

It was an hands-on kind of Tuesday for everyone, we all knew how important this client was for Jake. 

I had finally finished compiling the agreement and was about to go to Jake's office and hand him the files when my office phone rang. 

Over the past hour I had gotten some few calls from an unknown number that I had just ignored. If Jake spotted me on the phone while handling the agreement documents he would have been furious. 

I glanced at the screen and the register said 'St Mary's Hospital'. My heart skipped a beat, hospitals don't ever call with good news. And why was the hospital calling? 

I looked at my personal phone and saw the five missed calls and it immediately hit me, something was wrong with Kyle. 

They had tried to reach my personal phone and since I had not answered any of the calls they decided to use the office line. 

I immediately picked the phone up in total panic. 

"Hello?" I answered and even though I wanted to say something else, I could not find my voice. 

"Ms Lila?" a calm and professional voice spoke on the other end. "This is Nurse Williams from st Mary's hospital, are you the mother of Kyle pierce?" 

My stomach tightened at the mention of Kyle and I could feel all the color leave my face. My knees became suddenly weak as I sat back down, my hands shaking. 

"Yes, I am. Is everything okay?" I asked trying to hide the terror in my voice. 

There was a brief pause as if to decide whether to tell me what was going on or not. 

"Ms Lila, your son was brought into the emergency room a short while ago. He is experiencing a high fever, and we are running some tests to determine the cause. We need you to come to the hospital as soon as possible."

My whole world came crushing down in that instant as I thought about this morning when I was leaving for work and he was leaving for school. 

He had a slight fever and I tried to get him to stay home but he insisted that he was fine. The thought of him in a hospital room completely alone sent a wave of guilt all over my body. 

I needed to be with him. 

"I'm on my way." I said, my voice was firmer than I felt. 

I immediately hung up, my hands still shaking with fear as I shoved my laptop into my bag. My mind raced with different scenarios on what could be wrong with my son. I took one look at the documents that were supposed to be signed by Jake. 

I had to make a choice between being there for my five year old scared son or to give my boss the documents. But whoever said asking for forgiveness is easier than asking for permission was right. 

There was no way I was going to Jake and hope that he lets me go home earlier to see my son. The son he didn't even know that I had. 

I stood up with my bag and started heading out. 

The receptionist saw me and she must have noticed how distressed I was.

"Hey, Lila, are you okay?" she asked softly, touching my arm as I rushed for the elevator. 

"No, I have to go. Please give the documents on my desk to Jake." I said my voice was a little shaky, "I have an emergency."

With that I rushed to the elevator, the way down felt so slow. My hands were still shaking so badly and for a moment I was dizzy. My mind kept replaying the nurse' s voice over and over again. 

Lucky enough, I got an. Empty taxi that took me straight to the hospital. 

I rushed into the emergency room, my breath coming in short, anxious gasps. The sterile smell of antiseptic hit me as I approached the front desk. 

"I am here for Kyle Pierce, he is my son." I said my voice was still trembling. 

"He is in room 203. The nurse will take you there in a moment."

A few seconds later, a nurse came and she took me to my son's room. 

I saw him lying on the bed, his frame looked smaller in that hospital bed. 

"Mom."Kyle called out as soon as he saw me. 

" Hey baby, I'm here." I said taking his small hand in mine." I'm here." I said , fighting the tears freely flowing down my face. 

" What's wrong with me mommy?"Kyle asked in his soft, frail voice. 

" The doctor says you have a little fever baby, he is going to take good care of you, okay. Get some sleep." I said as I kissed him on the forehead. 

Sitting here, holding my sick son's hand made everything else so insignificant.