Chapter 9
A week after vacation, Koshie's Mum set a date for a visit to the hospital to see Odartey. Visitors could only see patients during visiting hours from four p.m. to six p.m. on Weekends. They could not afford to be late and be sent back home without seeing him.
"Koshie," said her Mum. "Get ready. We will be going to visit Odartey this evening." Koshie was so excited that she would see Odartey's face again.
"Can we go to church today?" she asked. "So we can pray for Odartey together?"
"I thought we did so already, Koshie?" her mother replied.
"I want us to do it again," she requested. Koshie and her mother went to church in the morning and asked the minister to pray for Odartey, which he did.
"Are you satisfied now?" asked her mother after the church service.
"Yes Mum," she replied. "Thank you." Koshie could not help hopping and leaping and skipping all the way until she got into the car. She was alone with her mother on a long drive to see her best friend. She thought about him the whole journey. When they alighted, all her excitement disappeared. She became apprehensive and obviously nervous.
"What's wrong?" asked her mother. "Don't you want to see Odartey anymore?"
"I'm afraid I'll see him in a state I might not be ready for," she confessed.
"Be strong," she said. "He will need a lot of that. Please don't cry when you see him. It might worsen his situation." As soon as she said that, Koshie's eyes welled up with tears.
"Oh Mum," she whined. "You shouldn't have said that. I wouldn't have cried." As she drew near to the door leading to his ward, she hesitated a little it, standing beside it for a little while as her mother sorted out a few processes with the nurses.
"Are you still standing here?" she asked compassionately. Koshie wiped her tears as her mother helped her out by knocking on the door. There was no answer. She opened it slightly and heard a voice behind her.
"Go right in, Madam. Don't hesitate and don't be long" Odartey was sleeping soundly and was hardly recognizable. Koshie saw the heart monitors and oxygen masks. She was terrified and relieved to see him at the same time. How could a boy so happy a few weeks ago be so immobile and helpless today?
"Mum," she said. "Is he going to be like this forever?"
"If they can help him, no," she said. "However, we must hope for the best." Suddenly, Odartey opened his eyes as if he heard what Koshie's mother said.
He smiled faintly, acknowledging their presence. Koshie was more relieved than ever, glad to see him smile, at least. She held out her 'get well soon' card and the teddy bear to him. The nurse by his side took it and placed it on his side drawer. He acknowledged it and closed his eyes again.
"Mum," she said. "Is he going to be sleeping like this forever?"
"The Doctor will inform you about his state and interventions later," said the nurse.
"What are interventions, mum?"
"Efforts to rectify the situation, Koshie." Koshie's mother tried to feign a smile but couldn't find one.
"Mum, have you realized you are using big words?" she confessed. "What do you mean by rectify?"
"Oh Koshie!" holding her daughter tight. She would never let anyone get away with a mistake. "It means to correct, my dear."
"So, back to my question, Mum…."
"The Doctor will answer your questions, pretty girl" emphasized the nurse.
"Okay, then I will reserve them for him. It seemed like she did not have to ask those questions after all. The doctor explained to her everything she and her mother needed to know about the situation.
"Get well soon," she whispered into his ears. He held his thumbs up in agreement. At least, he had promised he would get better for her sake.
The doctor then broke the news to them in his office, away from Odartey. He would be flying out of the country to Australia to have a surgery. It could take a few days or more. Koshie waited in the Out Patients Department whilst her mother and the doctor talked. When her mother returned, she looked so crestfallen.
"What did he say? Mum?"
"Odartey will be leaving for Australia for further treatment,, Koshie."
"He will be leaving me? He never said so? He promised to always be with me. How am I going to survive without him?"
"You will, my dear." Koshie's mother held her tight and they both cried together. They had become so attached to Odartey that they could not imagine living without him.