Final Breath

Some hospital bigwig with glasses and a blue suit greeted her as she was wheeled onstage. Flashbulbs blinded her, and the audience broke into applause. They even gave her a standing ovation. Sydney worked up a smile, all the while thinking how pathetic she must look in that neck brace. She used her workable arm to wave. Still, it hurt.

The bigwig stepped up to the podium. He talked about Sydney's figure-skating career and what an inspiration she was to so many youngsters. And now she was even more of an inspiration, a genuine hero. The orderly hadn't turned her wheelchair around to face the speaker, and Sydney couldn't move her head to look back at him. So the whole time, she was staring at the audience, trying to smile, and feeling like a total idiot while the man sang her praises. Worse, she desperately had to go to the bathroom. Bladder problems were just one of the many side effects of a spinal injury. She'd thought this would be a ten-minute private visit; and assumed she could hit the bathroom at any time. Instead, she was trapped on this stage with this well-meaning windbag.

The lights dimmed, and two big-screen TVs were rolled out on either side of the stage. The orderly turned her wheelchair toward one of the television sets. They started to play the home video of her rescuing Aidan. Until now, Sydney had managed to avoid seeing the clip.

Sydney watched herself in the slightly shaky, slightly grainy home video. She weaved through the crowd and called up to Aidan Cosgrove. The camera kept tilting up and down--from the boy to her. It pained Sydney to see that poor, sweet handsome boy on that ledge again. A collective murmur and a few gasps came from the audience as Aidan's shirt caught on fire. They gasped even louder as he jumped from the ledge and plummeted down toward Sydney. Her arms were outstretched in an effort to break his fall. She winced at the sight of him crashing down on her. Small wonder they both weren't dead. Sydney could almost feel her bones and organs being crushed all over again.

There was an awkward silence as the video clip ended and the lights came back on. It was like watching the Zapruder film; obviously, no one wanted to applaud. But they didn't even whisper or cough.

'Sydney,' the big shot said at last. 'There are two people here who would like to thank you for your courage and your selflessness.'

The orderly was a bit slow picking up his cues, and she still had her back to the speaker while the bigwig was addressing her. He finally turned Sydney's chair around in time for her to see Rikki Cosgrove emerge from behind the left curtain. Aidan's mother rolled onto the stage in her mechanized wheelchair. It had a small sidecar attachment that held a respiratory device. She took a brief hit of oxygen from a mask, and then set the mask in her lap. Rikki was about forty with a pale, careworn face and coppery-auburn hair that was cut in an unflattering bob with bangs. She wore a shiny lavender and powder blue jogging suit and slippers. She had an anguished look on her face--as if every breath she took hurt. And it probably did, Sydney figured.

Rikki Cosgrove rolled up beside Sydney and rested a hand on her arm--the one in a cast. Aidan's mother had tears in her eyes. Another orderly brought a microphone and set it close to Rikki. Then he lowered the mike so she could make her statement from the wheelchair.

'Sydney,' she said, in a strained, almost whiny voice. She seemed to struggle for a breath. 'I--I wouldn't be here right now if it weren't for you--and--and your humanity.' She took a moment to catch her breath again and then started to cry. 'I want to thank you for my life and the life of my son.'

Sydney put her hand over Rikki's and squeezed it. The audience cheered and flashbulbs popped. Rikki kissed Sydney's hand and held it to her cheek. Sydney was so overwhelmed, she couldn't speak.

The orderlies wheeled Aidan--in a portable bed--onto the stage. Staring at that poor, damaged little boy, all Sydney could think was: It's too soon for him to be put on display. The white bedsheets covered him up to the waist and he wore no shirt. There were no bandages hiding the horrible burns and blisters on his arms, stomach, and chest. A clear salve coated the blood-red and pink scarred skin, making the wounds look moist and greasy.

Several people in the audience gasped at the sight of this beautiful boy who was so disfigured. He seemed in terrible pain, but managed to give the crowd a brave smile. One of the orderlies grabbed the mike, and held it in front of Aidan. He didn't say anything for a moment. He seemed nervous and scared. Finally, he looked over at Sydney. 'Thank you, Sydney Jordan,' he murmured. 'You're my hero.'

The crowd applauded and cheered. One orderly moved the microphone back to Rikki while the other man wheeled Sydney to Aidan's bedside. More flashbulbs popped as she reached over and stroked his brown hair. Some of the hair along his right temple had been burned off and hadn't grown back yet. She could see he was trembling. 'I kind of hoped we could get together in private,' she admitted, under her breath. 'I know you're in a lot of pain, honey. I'm--so sorry. I hope you feel better soon.'

'You, too,' he whispered. The brave smile ran away from his face. 'I really, really tried not to land on you. I didn't expect you to catch me.'

'That doesn't matter,' Sydney said. 'All that matters is that you're alive, and you'll get better soon.'

No one else heard what was said between them, because Rikki was addressing the audience. Sydney just heard snippets, something about people touching people's lives. She mentioned how difficult it was raising a child on her own and taking temp jobs. She thanked the hospital for everything they'd done for her and Aidan. But the cost of their medical care would be enormous, and she welcomed donations through the hospital from people who wanted to touch their lives the way Sydney Jordan had. 'You can be a hero--like Sydney Jordan,' she concluded in her strained voice. 'We're not asking for a handout--just a helping hand.'

There was a polite smattering of applause from the audience while the orderly whisked the mike away from Rikki and set it in front of Aidan again. He nearly banged the thing against Sydney's halo-encircled head in the process.

Once again, Aidan seemed intimidated by the microphone. 'Please, be a hero, and give what you can,' he said meekly.

The audience applauded again.

Sydney suddenly didn't like any of this. The poor kid had been fed those lines ahead of time. He was obviously in horrible pain, and yet they'd wheeled him under these hot stage lights to perform--all so his mother could raise money to pay their hospital bills. Sydney realized desperate times called for desperate measures, but her heart broke for Aidan and she felt like a pawn in this whole venture.

The hospital bigwig started speaking again. Sydney waited until they moved the mike away from Aidan. 'I don't know about you, but I'm awfully tired,' she whispered to him. 'How are you doing, Aidan?'

'Everything hurts,' he murmured. 'I just want to go back to my room.'

Sydney still felt the need to rescue him. She touched his cheek, and it felt hot.

'...I'm sure you'd all like to hear from Sydney Jordan,' the hospital's representative was saying. The orderly set the mike down beside her, and readjusted the height level.

She waited for the applause to die down. 'Hi,' she said into the mike. 'I want to thank Aidan and Rikki Cosgrove for coming,' she said. 'It's wonderful to see Aidan again. He's an incredibly brave young man. I understand his doctors want him back in his room right now. So we're saying good-bye to Aidan and his mom...'

Blinking, Rikki Cosgrove appeared confused--and a bit perturbed--for a moment. But Aidan gave Sydney a furtive, grateful smile. No one on the stage moved.

'So--good-bye for now,' Sydney repeated. 'I hope we can get together again very soon.'

Finally, the orderlies got the hint and started to move Aidan's bed toward the right curtain. With a pinched smile, Rikki waved to the crowd, then turned her wheelchair around and trailed after the orderlies.

'I'm unable to applaud,' Sydney said, moving her one good arm. 'But I hope you'll give Aidan and Rikki a hand for me--in more ways than one.'

A few people in the audience chuckled at her lame pun, and everyone applauded as Aidan and his mother made their exit together.

Once the clamor died down, Sydney made a brief, off-the-cuff speech, thanking everyone for their cards, encouragement, and prayers. She still desperately had to go to the bathroom, so she announced that she was very tired, and quickly wrapped it up.

As the orderly rolled her out stage left, a thin, balding man she'd never seen before approached her. Wearing a cheap pale blue suit, and carrying a clipboard, he blocked their way. 'That's not how the program was supposed