Page 20 of Second Chance Fate

“Oh!” Audrey became even more animated as she relayed, “And one time when she was visiting Nonna and they were in the community room, Owen was playing chess with Mr. Santino.”

Before Audrey continued, Taylor knew exactly where this story was headed. Owen had been the talk of the retirementhome for weeks. They treated him like a hero, but he told everyone he wasn’t a hero; he just knew what medicine to give him. To Owen it really wasn’t a big deal; he never knew life without medication.

“While Owen and Mr. Santino were playing, Viv said she saw beads of sweat forming on his forehead, and then he started shaking and passed out in, like, under sixty seconds. They sounded the alarm for the nurse to come. Viv was nine months pregnant and was freaking out. The rest of the residents were either panicking or seemed to have no interest at all as Mr. Santino was slumped over in his chair. Viv said Owen got up, as calm and confident as any man she’d ever known—which, if you knew my sister is, sayinga lot—walked over, checked a little thing that looked like a pager on his hip then got some sort of nasal spray out of Mr. Santino’s jacket pocket, took the cap off, and shot it up his nose.

“She said Owen didn’t panic at all. When Mr. Santino came around, Owen told him what happened; he said his blood sugar had dropped below forty, and he had given him the nasal spray, and he kept him talking until the medic, who had been dealing with another emergency arrived. Viv said she was freaked out, but Owen acted so nonchalant, like it was just another Tuesday for him.”

That’s because itwasjust another Tuesday for him.

Taylor never discussed Owen’s health to protect his privacy and also because most people she knew didn’t actually care. Even though she’d given Audrey the broad strokes, it would be better if she knew the specifics so she could make an informed decision on whether or not she wanted to hire her with her extenuating circumstances. “It didn’t freak him out, because he has type 1 diabetes, too.”

“Oh, right.”

“We moved to town eight months ago, but I’ve had to homeschool him until today because he’s been too sick to attend. He was born ten weeks premature, and he’s dealt with chronic conditions his whole life. Within the first six months, he was diagnosed with asthma, epilepsy, and cardiomyopathy.”

“Oh my gosh, I am so sorry.” Audrey shook her head. “I can’t begin to imagine how hard that must be.”

“He’s a tough kid.” Taylor could never begin to express how proud she was of him.

“Oh, yeah, that goes without…I’m sure he is.” She nodded. “But I was actually thinking about you.” Audrey reached out and touched her hand. “That must be…just…torture for you.”

“Oh, no, it’s…” Taylor shook her head no and started to say it’s fine, it’s not about her, it didn’t matter what she went through, but she couldn’t speak over the golf-ball-sized lump of emotion clogging her throat.

Besides her neighbor Alice, a handful of nurses over the past decade, and Manny, no one ever saw her. They didn’t see the sleepless nights, the endless worry, the trips to the E.R., the hundreds of decisions that have to be made, the constant balance of giving your child a “normal” life but also protecting them, the sacrifice, and the toll it takes.

Not that she was complaining. She wasn’t. She was so thankful and grateful, honored and blessed that she had Owen and he had her. But that didn’t mean she wasn’t exhausted and burned out.

Huge tears were filling Taylor’s lower lids. She did her best to blink them away. It was a failed attempt as large drops slid down her cheek.

She pasted on a smile as she sniffed and brushed both off her face with the back of her hand. “Sorry.”

“No. Don’t be. Okay, I think I have everything I need.”

Taylor nodded, stood, and forced herself to continue smiling even though she was fairly certain ending the interview crying was not the best way to show that she would be a stable employee. This interview was clearly blown, but at least now she knew the pitfalls that she’d avoid during the next one.

“Thank you so much for your time.”

“No, thank you. I’m so glad you came in. Is tomorrow too early to start?”

“Tomorrow?” she repeated in disbelief.

Audrey nodded. “Does eight to four work?”

“I’m hired?”

“Are you kidding me? Do you know how many cool points I’m going to get with Viv for hiring Owen’s mom?” Audrey teased. “Seriously, though, we had a single mom, and after she passed, our older sister Grace stepped in and raised us. Family always comes first, so you never have to worry about that with us. And Owen is always welcome here. I know we’re not as cool as Mr. Santino or Nonna, but we do have really good lemonade.”

“I’ll let him know.” Taylor felt tears welling up again, this time from joy and relief. “Thank you so much. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

She turned to leave when Audrey stopped her. “Can I ask you one more thing?”

Taylor turned back. “What?”

“Have you seen the show Vikings?”

“No.” Taylor shook her head. “But a lot of people tell me that I look like one of the characters on that show. I think her name is Agatha.”

“I think it’s Lagertha,” Audrey said with a smile that Taylor couldn’t quite put her finger on. “See you tomorrow.”

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