Thursday, June 28, 2012

Two Hearts

Jorace picked up the picture remembering the past with tearful eyes.

“Kyler and I were both born with weak hearts exactly one year apart. Neither of us were able to do any strenuous activities. We lived in the New Brighten district back then. Neither of us ever wanted for anything, but our parents tried to give us as much as possible. Father worked three jobs, usually different ones every month. Mother worked one, but tried to be home as much as possible in case something happened to one of us.”

Handing the photograph to Saryna, he continued the story.

“I was in the hospital most of the year when I was seven. Being that young all we wanted to do was play, even if it was bad for us. I was released a month before our birthday, which was already the best birthday present I could have hoped for.”

As we sat down on November 5th to watch mine and Kyler's favorite movie while enjoying our birthday cake, the phone rang. I remember mother coming back crying with a huge smile on her face. We asked her what was wrong and all she said was our birthday present would arrive in a little while. Of course hearing that would brighten the face of any child.

Impatiently, we waited and waited for what seemed like months as we watched the movie and waited for the doorbell to ring. We kept stealing glances at the door hoping that our minds would make them come sooner.

Just as we were sitting down for dinner, there was a rap at the door. Kyler and I launched ourselves at the front door so fast that it scared mom and dad. After they scolded us for being too rowdy they answered it.

A delivery man rolled in a big silver case followed by a man in a dark blue suit with gray hair. Dr. Brintam would become the grandfather we never had. We had never seen anything as expensive as that mysterious box.

Dr. Brintam explained that while I was in the hospital he had come across mine and my brothers files, and the many petitions my mother made for heart transplants. He told us that he was from BioNet, the largest medical company in the world, and that he had chosen us to test their newest product.

"This is the 'Synthetic Muscle Oscillating Network' or Symon." He waved his hand over the box as the delivery man opened it. "One of the problems we found with growing organs in a lab was that they were, for lack of a better word, lifeless. We created Symon so that the organs could be exercised as they're grown." He knelt down in front of Kyler and me with a big smile. "Basically, Symon is growing two new hearts for you so that you can run around all you want one day." That brought the biggest smiles to our faces that mom and dad had ever seen.

“Before he left, Dr. Brintam wanted to get a picture of me and Kyler with Symon. But we wanted a picture of everyone together. Mom and dad, me and Kyler, and the Doc and Symon. The two of us may have been young, but we knew how special all of them were, and we wanted to remember that day for the rest of our lives.”


Jorace and Saryna looked up as Kyler walked in the room and sat next to his brother while taking off his tie. "I can't believe Doc's gone." The three of them sat in silence, staring at the photo, remembering the life that Dr. Brintam had given those two young boys.