I’ll be late to work. I guess there’s a first time for everything. My boss won’t mind much because I stayed back last night to get that project done. But one of my co-workers will berate me for it. She always does whenever I make a mistake. I’m not one to get mad over that though, so when I get to my desk I’ll still be smiling. I’ve been looking forward to today for so long that nothing could bring me down. Work will pass by in a blur until the final hour. A soon to be retiree will swing by my desk. Paul never spoke to me before, yet he’ll sit down and ask me about my day.
“It’s been good so far. How is yours?”
“Terrific. It’s kind of sad that I won’t be here next week.”
“They must be finding it difficult to get your replacement.”
“Oh I’m sure someone else can pick up the mantle. In fact I was given the honour of choosing them myself.”
“Do you have anyone in mind?”
“Not quite. But I’m putting the word in at the end of the day.”
“That’s not much time to choose someone for such an important role.”
Paul will shrug, with a smile in his eyes that I’ve come to recognise him by in the past few years. “Your boss seems to think that too. I spoke to them earlier and they scolded me for delaying so much. Funny to think that I’m the same level as their boss.”
“They would be great at your role. It’d be sad to have someone else be my boss, but I’m sure they’d be brilliant as our spokesperson.”
“You really think so?”
“Yeah, though I might be biased. They put in so much effort and deserve a promotion.”
Paul will smile at me and nod. “Glad you think so. They’re actually top of my list. I haven’t told them that yet, wanted it to be a surprise. Do you mind keeping it quiet for now?”
“Sure.”
“Thanks for the chat. I’ll let you work then.”
After he leaves I’ll keep processing donations and stay back half an hour. There’s no way I wouldn’t make up for being ten minutes late. I’d feel bad if people’s donations were wasted on my wage instead of going to the cause when I wasn’t there for the whole time. I’ll swing by my boss’ office on my way out, smiling at them absorbed in their work and no doubt ready to stay back another hour past their finish time. It’s great that they’re getting rewarded for their hard work. I know how passionate they are for the cause.
Instead of interrupting them, I’ll hurry downstairs and walk ten minutes to the station. My usual train will leave the station as I get there and I’ll sigh. The one day where I don’t want to run late and I’m made to wait another ten minutes for the next train. But it’s okay because I’m still going to get there. Tara’s no doubt already waiting at the spot, wondering why I insisted to be there today of all days. But I needed her to be alone for this. I can’t just drop this kind of thing anywhere. I’ll check my pocket and smile as the train arrives, helping someone with their pram get off before getting on.
An unusual paranoia will settle over me as I sway back and forth with the train. I’ll pat my pocket a few times in the trip and smile as my station enters my sight. When I leave the station, I’ll check again that everything’s still on me and shake my head. I’ve always been overly careful, but today’s just affecting my behaviour more. My car will be a bit of a walk away because I hate taking up station parking and refuse to park at the shopping centre. But I won’t mind the time to clear my mind and relax. It’s not an opportunity I come by often.
I’ll remember Tara and run the rest of the way to my car. I’d never speed while driving mind you. I just enjoy the feeling of the cold wind rushing against my face. It reminds me of when I used to run marathons as a hobby. Now I have neither the time nor energy to participate. In eight minutes I’ll have reached our meeting spot. It’s a fair distance away from anyone else, but I know she’ll want the privacy. Tara’s never been one to get emotional in public and our house just doesn’t seem special enough for this.
When I walk up that hill, she’ll smile back at me. She doesn’t have a clue why we’re meeting today. I’ve told nobody about it. It’s been hard to keep it a secret for all this time, but I had to make sure we were both ready first. Doing that subtly has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I know that it’ll be worth it. She’s definitely worth it. With this, I know that she’ll become so happy. Her smile will reach her eyes when I kneel down in front of her. My hand will reach my pocket and my heart will skip a beat as I stumble around for it.
Tara will screech with happiness when she figures it out. I’ll laugh back at her and open the small box. The metallic contents will twinkle in the sunlight. It cost a small fortune to get this to the exact specifications needed for her. But with it, Tara will finally be able to live out her dream. Ever since she was a little girl she’s been wishing for one thing, and I’m finally able to give it to her. My sweet daughter will finally be able to walk. She’ll be able to escape this wheelchair and run down our hill.
Saving for it took me working two part-time jobs alongside my full-time charity worker position for five years. It’s meant not seeing my baby girl as much as I’d like, but I’ve seen her enough to watch her grow into a lovely young woman. I’m just glad that after today and after her surgery, I’ll finally be able to spend my nights and weekends with her. I’ll be able to make up for the lost time. Maybe I’ll even move up in my job so I can help more people like Tara. I know she’d love that.
At that moment though, I’ll hug my ecstatic daughter and tell her about the appointment I’ve already made with her specialist. There’s no way I’d make her wait even longer when she’s been waiting for long enough as it is. I’ll push her wheelchair back down the hill and to the car while she happily plans all the places we’ll go once she’s able to walk. I’ve of course got to be the one to remind her that it’ll take time to teach her legs how to walk first, but she’ll brush it off and call me a spoil sport. I’ll laugh with her and feel like the luckiest person alive.
I will do this and more officer, if you don’t pull that trigger.
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