Page 134 of Fumble Into the End Zone
Marcus’s deep voice pulled my attention. He joined me at the table, kissing my hand.
“I’m sorry about yesterday, and I think we need to go to the doctor. Later today, I will get Granny’s burial planned. Baby, I think we should go to the courthouse and get married. We can have the wedding later,” Marcus said with a shaky voice.
Caressing his hand, I turned to him. “I will not accept your apology because you don’t need to be sorry for anything. Your grandmother died, Marcus. You are allowed to grieve and be angry. We can check in with Dr. Betts if it would ease your mind. We are getting married on the date we planned and not a day sooner because you’re going to trust me. Granny already made her own arrangements,” I informed and passed him the envelope.
“Baby, I would,” he stuttered.
“Feel better if you try to put clamps on me and Harley,” I finished.
Marcus lowered his eyes, and this time, I kissed his hand. “We don’t need clamps because Harley and I love you. We’re going to trust in our support system, which means family,friends, and teammates,” I said, rubbing my hand up and down his arm.
“Listen to those heartbeats, they are strong,” Dr. Betts said.
She gave Marcus and Harley the stethoscope and allowed them to listen. Relief and happiness returned to their faces. When I called Dr. Betts, she rushed over for a home visit instead of us coming into the office. She gave me a full check up and said my blood pressure was a little high but nothing else to be concerned about.
“Harley, are you still praying for more siblings?” Dr. Betts asked, and Harley’s response broke my heart.
“No, I don’t pray anymore,” she said.
I turned to Marcus, but he was still numb. As he walked Dr. Betts out, I patted the seat next to me for Harley.
“Hey lady, why don’t you pray anymore?” I asked after I lifted her chin.
Harley’s shoulders fell and her jaw slacked. “Because I asked for Granny’s knee to be healed, not for her to die,” she said.
“Healing comes in a variety of ways, Harley. In heaven, Granny’s knee doesn’t hurt, and she gets to see your grandpa. Yea, it hurts because we want her here with us, but we got a new guardian angel to watch over us. It’s okay to be sad, but we’re going to do things to remember and honor her,” I said.
Harley twisted her lip from side to side. “How do we honor her?” she asked.
“We keep praying because I believe it would make her happy. We can cook her favorite food, remember the lessons she taught us, do balloon releases, and still eat cake on her birthday. Thereare tons of things we can do to honor her memory. I believe when we pray, we can pass messages to her,” I said.
Harley reached for my neck and hugged me.
“Can I sit in Granny’s chair?” Harley asked.
“I think she would love it,” I said.
Marcus and I watched our daughter climb in the chair and prop the legs up. I snuggled more into his chest as we sat in silence. He exhaled hard after his phone vibrated. He pulled it from his pocket, and it was unknown.
“Do you want to tell her?” I asked.
“No, I will curse her out,” he said.
“Do you want me to tell her? Granny left her a letter in the envelope and it’s her last wish for her to have it,” I informed.
“We will mail it,” he said and I agreed.
When his phone vibrated again, he tossed his head back. “Ed, I will curse you...”
“No you won’t,” I said and motioned for his phone.
He placed it in my hand, and I answered it. “Hello Ed, this is Mia.”
“Please accept my condolences from my family and the team. How is Marcus holding up?” he asked.
“Marcus is a little raw right now with his words. It’s hard, but we will make it through,” I said as I smiled up at my future husband.
“The team and my wife want to know if we could do anything. Food, anything, just name it. We will also be attending the funeral services,” he said.
