Page 41 of Starting Anew

Lynn glanced at her mother who was smiling at the story. One from her childhood came to mind, and she considered not telling it, but decided it was from her life and she should be able to do so whether her father approved or not.

“I remember one day, Perry and I were so bored. It’d been raining for what felt like forever, and we were sure we’d done everything we could to entertain ourselves. I finally settled on reading a book, but Perry had other ideas. She came through the room we shared and disappeared into the closet.”

Lynn chuckled at the memory. “Curious—and still pretty bored—I opened the closet to find Perry had gotten our mom’s make-up bag and was liberally applying everything to her face. In the semi-dark. Oh, she was a mess.”

Nathan laughed heartily. “I can’t say I’m looking forward to Mia wanting to wear make-up. So what did you do when you saw Perry?”

“We were already bored. The last thing I wanted was be grounded from the few activities we did have available. In desperation, I started wiping the make-up off her face with one of my sweaters.”

To Lynn’s surprise, her mother chimed in. “And that’s when I found them. I never could get the make-up out of that shirt. And you girls still got into trouble.”

Dad gave his wife a sharp look, but Mom didn’t seem to notice.

Nathan grinned. “What was your punishment?”

“We had to clean the kitchen from top to bottom and make it shine.” Lynn shrugged. “At least we weren’t bored anymore.”

Everyone but Dad laughed.

Nathan started telling another story when a nurse walked into the waiting room, effectively creating a blanket of silence.

“Are you the family of Perry Truitt?”

Dad stepped forward, put an arm around Mom, and said, “We are.”

Lynn went to stand near them and nodded her head. A moment later, she felt Nathan just behind her. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze before letting go again.

“She’s awake, but still very groggy. Family can visit for a while, but the rooms are small. So a short visit might be best until we get her moved from recovery to a regular room.”

Dad barely allowed her time to finish before speaking again. “Her mother and I will sit with her.” Then he moved forward as though that settled everything.

Lynn wasn’t about to let him take over like that. “I’m Perry’s sister. I’d like to come see her for a little while as well.”

The nurse smiled. “Of course.” She turned to Nathan. “I’m sure we can squeeze four in if your husband would like to come along.”

Lynn’s cheeks immediately heated as she turned and gave Nathan an apologetic look.

To his credit, he simply raised a hand and said, “I’m just a friend of the family. You three go ahead, and I’ll make a run to the cafeteria. Can I get anyone anything?”

Dad ignored him completely, Mom shook her head with a polite, “No, thank you.”

Nathan touched Lynn’s arm. “Want me to grab you a sandwich or something?”

“That would be great. Thank you.”

He smiled into her eyes. “You’re welcome. I’ll be praying for Perry.”

With a final glance his way, Lynn followed the nurse through the double doors, down a hallway, and into recovery room nine where the sound of beeping monitors greeted them.

Dad and Mom rushed forward, and Lynn hung back a little. Perry looked so small in the large hospital bed, and so pale next to the white sheets. She lifted her eyelids and looked at their parents with a small smile on her face. Clearly the poor girl was having a difficult time staying awake.

Lynn remained patient as Mom doted on Perry and Dad looked as though he felt helpless.

Suddenly, Lynn’s stomach pitched and her breath caught in her throat. It’d been years since she last spoke to Perry. Waving at her in the window was one thing, but this… What if Lynn walked up there and Perry didn’t want to have anything to do with her? What if she upset Perry?

Lynn considered escaping before she was spotted, but knew that wasn’t the answer. She’d been waiting for years to see her little sister again. She wasn’t about to miss the opportunity.

Instead, she went around to the other side of the bed and approached. When Perry’s gaze shifted, Lynn gave her a little wave and a smile. “Hi Perry.”

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