Breaking Through by L.E. Wagensveld

Author:L.E. Wagensveld
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Friends to Lovers, Second Chance at Love, Small town romance, Family Issues, First Kiss, Growing Up Together
Publisher: Inkspell Publishing
Published: 2023-03-14T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 17

Sam was two blocks from the hospital when his phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out, his heart jumping with hope. It had done that every time he received a message for the last two weeks. Ever since he had last seen Chuck. So far, he’d only experienced disappointment, but his heart refused to give up its hopeful vigil.

The screen displayed a text message from his father. Swallowing disappointment, Sam swiped the notification open. I’m in town and near the hospital. Grab a coffee before your shift?

Sam blinked and reread the message before typing his reply. Meet you in the waiting room in 15 minutes?

His steps sped up. He would throw his things in his locker and have plenty of time to prepare for his shift. He usually arrived early Saturdays to give the lady at the charity shop a hand.

Lost in thought, Sam found himself at the hospital in no time. Sam made his way toward the front waiting room, pulling a sweatshirt over his scrubs and tucking his lanyard into his pocket.

It was half full. A man, his face grizzled by a life lived too hard, sat with a blond boy in an oversized jacket. As Sam passed, the boy glanced up, then away. Three chairs down, a muscle-bound twenty-something sat with a blood-soaked rag clutched to his face. A hockey bag bulged by his feet, a stick protruding from the busted zipper like an errant limb.

The hockey tournament. Every year it brought the hospital staff a wide assortment of bloody noses, concussions, and the occasional heart attack. Plenty of middle-aged men viewed the weekend-long tourney as their yearly claim to manly retribution and physical exertion. The entire scene had the makings of a long night. Sam checked his phone. Five minutes and his dad would look for him.

The little boy was alone now, head hanging as he studied something in his lap. Sam went to walk by, then, on impulse, approached him.

“Hey buddy, whatcha got there?” he asked.

The boy scuttled back into the shelter of the seat’s plastic embrace at the sound of Sam’s voice. Huge brown eyes flicked up to Sam’s, then darted around the room. Sam squatted in front of the chair, bringing himself to the child’s level.

“It’s my Spider-Man.” The voice was timid but steady.

“Awesome!” Sam grinned, careful to remain still. “I was always a Batman guy myself, but Spider-Man is really cool.”

A shy smile curved the boy’s lips. “I like Batman, but I don’t have any other toys.”

“Well, that’s smart,” Sam said. “You wouldn’t want to bring too many here or you might lose them. Good to just have your favourite.”

The boy studied Sam’s face for a moment, then looked down at the toy. “I don’t have any others at home either.”

Sam’s heart twisted. It was an old familiar ache. He could not be sure, but he guessed the boy was about seven. A similar age to his niece, who was loud and robust, with a room bursting with more toys than she knew what to do with.

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