“Kimberly, don’t ever think like that. You and Nevaeh are my world. I want to be there for you guys. I’m coming whether you like it or not, and that’s final.”
I sighed. “Okay, if you want to. Do you want to come pick us up or meet us there?”
“I’ll come pick you up. If she missed most of school last week, I think it would be hard trying to lift her into and out of your car. I’ll bring my SUV and carry her myself.”
“Thanks,” I said relieved that he was going to do that for us.
The next morning, Dale showed up right on time and helped get Nevaeh ready before carrying her to the vehicle. Along the way to the doctor appointment, he tried to make small talk to ease my mind.
“It's a shame Nevaeh doesn’t feel well. I would’ve suggested we hit the mall and do a little Christmas shopping,” he smiled in the rear view mirror at the small girl before glancing over to her mom.
“Yeah, that would’ve been nice,” I agreed. All I could think of was how few gifts Nevaeh would get this year due to my financial situation. And Dale, I hadn’t even bought him a gift. What do you buy a billionaire who already has everything? A tree for the island he owns off the Florida coast?
This was the first year in a long time that I was dreading the holiday. Normally, Christmas was my favorite holiday. I’d deck the house out in tiny snowmen with a nativity scene planted on top of the table near the front door and colored lights inside and out. This year, I barely managed to get a plainly decorated tree up in the living room and wrapped a few strands of garland along the door frame going into the kitchen. The tree had hardly any presents under it, but that was okay. That was normal, especially since Santa brought most of everything anyway. Boy, Santa sure is going to look pathetic this year.
Pulling up at the doctor’s office, Dale parked at the front door and turned on his hazard lights as he climbed out of the SUV to carry Nevaeh inside for me. Once we were inside the warm building, he headed back out in the cold and parked the car. Dusting the cold winter chill off of himself as he re-entered the building, the medical assistant was calling Nevaeh back for her appointment. He headed back to the private room with us. Surprisingly, Dr. Newton didn’t keep us waiting this time.
“So I hear Nevaeh’s symptoms have gotten much worse than they initially were. What has changed?”
“She’s still experiencing the severe pain and stiffening even with the medications she’s on. It’s almost as if her body does not recognize the medicine.”
“Mmhmm, I see,” he mumbled, glancing through her chart at the last set of tests. “I think we’ll need to do another MRI and maybe a few more X-rays before we decide on the next step.”
“More testing?” I could feel my heart drop. This wasn’t something I was going to be able to afford.
“Yes, I can get them scheduled right after Christmas and I’ll have you come back in right after the first of the year. With the holidays, I can only work so much magic in rushing the tests.”
“Dale, can you go ahead and start taking Nevaeh back out to the car for me?” I wanted to speak to the doctor alone.
After he and Nevaeh had left, I turned my attention to the doctor. “Look, Dr. Newton, I really like you. You’re a great physician, but I can’t afford to keep doing all of this testing. I’m a single mom who lives on an extremely meager income.”
“Miss Harris, I do understand your concern. These tests are necessary. I would never order additional testing if it weren’t required to determine exactly what we’re dealing with.”
“So you’re saying that these tests are absolutely necessary? You can’t just look at the ones she did a few months ago?”
“I’m afraid not. As the condition progresses, it takes its toll on the body. We need to see how much it has affected her bones and joints. If we don’t do that and don’t treat her condition correctly, it could leave her crippled in a wheelchair with severe pain—more pain that she’s in right now.”
Frustrated, I agreed, “I’ll make sure we have it done.”
Out in the warm car, Dale and Nevaeh waited for me. When he saw me walking out of the building, he circled around to pick me up at the front door. The car ride home was silent as I thought about how much everything was really adding up. It also didn’t help the fact that I barely had Nevaeh’s presents bought for Christmas. When we arrived at my house, he carried Nevaeh inside and sat her on the couch.
“Nevaeh, would you like some hot chocolate?”