I’d believed Emily’s story had ended.
***
Over the following weeks, I kept in touch with Gianna.
Sophie recovered slowly.
When she was well enough for visitors, I stopped by her hospital room.
She was sitting up, coloring.
“Are you the doctor who helped me?” she asked.
I smiled.
“One of them.”
Sophie recovered slowly.
She handed me a drawing.
It showed a doctor standing beside a little girl.
“That’s you,” she explained.
“Well, you made me look much younger.”
She giggled.
“That’s you.”
***
I placed the drawing beside Lucy’s photo when I got home.
A month later, I told Paul I was reducing my hospital hours.
He nearly dropped his coffee.
“Dr. Miller? Working less? Are you feeling okay?”
I laughed.
“Better than I have in years.”
“Are you feeling okay?”
***
I began volunteering at the center, helping families understand medical information and find support.
