There was a slight sniffle on the other end of the phone. I knew Meagan wasn’t used to hearing me sound so defeated. I wasn’t used to hearing it myself.
“I will be, sweets. See you soon.”
“Okay.”
Hitting End, I stood up and took in a few deep-cleansing breaths. Closing my eyes, I dug deep down inside to find the strength I knew I needed.
Opening my eyes, I made my way to the room. I knocked softly on the door as I opened it. My eyes looked between Noah and Emily and I couldn’t help but notice how defeated Emily looked. Noah stood next to his mother as he spoke softly into his mother’s ear.
Quickly glancing to my left, I saw Angela. She wiped a tear away and gave me a sweet smile. I’d come to really like her in the last few weeks. Her heart was beyond amazing and I felt foolish for the jealousy that raced through my body when I first met her.
Giving her a questioning look, she nodded and mouthed, “Almost time.”
Swallowing hard, I turned back to Lisa. I’d never experienced something like this before. Everyone I had loved and was close to was still alive. I had no way of knowing what Noah and Emily were experiencing as they watched their mother slowly begin her journey home.
Noah must have seen me from the corner of his eye. Lifting his head, he smiled so big, I had to place my hands on my stomach. His face lit up and he motioned for me to come to him. Knowing that just merely me being here for him caused such a reaction did insane things to my heart and stomach.
Walking up to the side of the bed he was on, I held my breath. “Grace, I’m so glad you came in. I was saying goodbye to, Mom.” Turning, Noah leaned down a little bit further. “Mom, Grace is here. Grace is here with me, Mom.”
Emily covered her mouth in an attempt not to cry. My eyes caught hers and I was overtaken with how sad she looked. My heart broke even more.
Looking back at Noah, he motioned for me to talk to his mother as he backed away from the bed. “I’ll be right back. Em, let’s go grab a drink of water.”
Panic set in as I realized Noah was leaving me alone with his mother. Frozen in place, I tried to open my mouth in protest to beg him not to leave me alone with Lisa. Nothing came out. Not even the breath of air I was still holding in.
Angela walked up to me and whispered, “It’s important to Noah, therefore it’s important to Lisa for you to say your goodbyes.”
Nodding my head, I turned and stepped into the spot Noah had been. My eyes searched Lisa’s face. She seemed to be sleeping peacefully. Her breathing had settled and now it was as if she was perfectly fine. I watched as her chest rose up slowly, then slowly released. My heart raced when it didn’t rise back up as fast as I thought it should. I knew her body was slowly shutting down. Bit by bit, she was letting go.
Reaching for her hand, I couldn’t help but suck in a gasp as I felt how cold it was. “Hi Lisa, it’s me, Grace. I totally forgot to bring the latest gardening book with me. I’m sure you are wondering about how we are going to get that spring garden ready.”
My body slumped and I rolled my eyes. Jesus H. Christ. Did I really just say that? The poor woman is dying and I cracked a joke. A stupid one at that. Looking over my shoulder at Angela, I couldn’t help but notice she was chuckling. Motioning for me to keep talking, I turned back to Lisa.
“I might as well go ahead and confess this. I’ve never been known for telling a good joke.”
Lisa’s hand jerked under mine. She can hear me. She knows what I’m saying to her.
“There will always be a part of me that will wish we could have gotten to know each other better. After all, we both love the same man. I think we would have been wonderful friends. Lisa, I need you to know that I’m going to be Noah’s strength. I promise you. He’s going to be lost for a bit . . . I know this. But I won’t leave his side. I’ll fight for him when he has no fight left. Did Noah tell you he asked me to marry him? I will say this though, he isn’t terribly romantic. He asked me in the backyard, while I was digging up a hole to plant some lettuce.”
Lisa’s hand moved slightly again as I gently squeezed it back. “He claimed it was his practice run, and that he had something more grand planned. Here’s to hoping.”
Angela giggled behind me as I bit hard on my lower lip to gain control of my shaking voice. Dragging in a deep breath, I fought to try and figure out how to say goodbye to Lisa. I wanted more than anything for her to stay with us. For Noah and I to tell her we were engaged. To tell her she was going to be a grandmother and see her hold our child for the first time.
