Chapter 9:The First Breath Of Tomorrow
582 Words
POV:Elias
The world was spinning. Selling my blood after a ten-hour shift at the construction site had drained me of everything. I sat on the floor outside Bella’s room, my back against the cold wall, clutching the receipt for the twenty-two thousand naira.
"Sir, you need to eat something," Sam whispered, sitting next to me. He looked worried. I was pale, and my hands wouldn't stop shaking.
"I'm fine, Sam," I croaked. "I just need to see her."
I stood up, using the wall for support, and walked to the glass window. The morning sun was streaming through the hospital hallway, turning the sterile white floor into a sea of gold. I looked at my daughter. The machines were still humming, but something was different.
The room was quiet. Too quiet.
Suddenly, a high-pitched alarm began to blare from inside the room. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
"Nurse!" I shouted, my heart leaping into my throat. "Nurse, something is wrong!"
Doctors and nurses rushed past me, their white coats flapping like wings. They pushed me out of the way. I stood frozen, my hands pressed against the glass. I saw them huddled around her bed. I saw the Chief Surgeon—the one who had taken my billions—checking her eyes with a small light.
"Please," I whispered, my forehead touching the cold glass. "Don't take her. Not after everything."
I thought of the cement bags. I thought of the silver buttons I sold. I thought of the blood I gave. I offered it all up to God in that moment. Take my life, but let her stay.
Inside the room, the Surgeon suddenly stopped. He looked at the monitor, then at the nurse. He slowly pulled the mask down from his face. He wasn't frowning.
He was smiling.
The door swished open, and Dr. Benson stepped out. He looked at me—covered in dust, bleeding from a needle track, and wearing a ruined silk shirt. He didn't see a laborer. He saw a father.
"Elias," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "The pressure in her brain... it’s gone. She’s breathing on her own."
I couldn't speak. My throat was too tight.
"Go inside," the doctor whispered. "She’s asking for you."
I walked into the room on trembling legs. The smell of medicine was gone, replaced by the scent of morning air. I reached the side of the bed and looked down.
Bella’s eyes were open. They were tired and heavy, but they were open. When she saw me, a tiny, weak smile touched her lips.
"Daddy?" she whispered. Her voice was like the sound of a small bird."Why are you so dusty?"
I let out a sob that had been trapped in my chest for days. I fell to my knees by the bed and grabbed her tiny hand,kissing it over and over.My tears washed the grey cement dust off my knuckles and onto her white sheets.
"It's okay, my queen," I cried,my voice breaking. "Daddy was just... I was just building something for you. I'm here. I'm never leaving again."
Behind me, in the doorway, I saw Sam wiping his eyes. Even the sharp-faced nurse was looking away, dabbing at her face with a tissue.
The Billionaire was gone. The King was dead. But in that small, quiet hospital room, a Father had finally found his soul.
- Writer
