Corey opened her eyes a crack and let out a surprised call. “Oh,” she panted, realizing what it was she saw. “Zac, you scared me.”
“Sorry,” he said with an apologetic smile. “The nurse said I could come in.”
She smiled as well. “It’s okay,” she assured him. “So, should I get dressed so we can go -”
“No,” Zac said. “Ike and Tay aren’t here. They’re going gift shopping for Jessie, Avie, Mack, and Zoë. I asked them to drop me off here just so you’d know we’re not going back on what we said,” he explained. “Ike said bright and early . . .”
She smiled again. “That’s okay. But I thought Isaac said we had a lot of stuff to do today? Are we still gonna have time?”
“Well, if we don’t do it today, we’ll do it tomorrow,” he said with a grin.
“Jeez! How long are you guys staying here?”
“Till the fourth - Sunday,” he said. “Then we, like, have to get back.” He grinned. “Recording and stuff.”
“Cool,” she said. “I wish I’d be alive long enough to hear the new CD.”
Zac’s grin faded. “Well, you never know. Maybe you will be,” he said, trying to keep his tone optimistic.
Corey smiled, being optimistic as well - for his sake. “Yeah, maybe,” she said. “And if I am, you’ve gotta send me a copy, okay?”
Zac smiled at her and held his hand out. “Deal.”
She took his hand and squeezed it. “Deal,” she agreed.
Zac took his hand from hers and grabbed a chair from the corner of the room. He brought it to the bedside and sat down. “So,” he began, “what is it that you’ve always wanted to do?”
“Didn’t I already tell you that?” she asked, pulling her eyebrows together questioningly.
“I know you said you wanted to drive, have a boyfriend, your first kiss, and get married,” he recalled. “But, is that all?”
Corey shrugged. “I guess. I really don’t want much out of life, Zac. Just the simple things. The stuff everyone else takes for granted,” she told him.
Zac just looked at her. “Everyone else takes for granted,” he repeated.
“Yeah,” Corey said quietly. “You never value life so much as when you know you don’t have much life left.”
Zac could say nothing. It was hard for him to fathom that someone younger than he was could be so wise; make so much sense. All he could do was look at her; her blue bandanna, her soft brown eyes; the IV in her arm. In his eyes, she was beautiful.
“Zac?” Corey asked quietly, stirring him from his thoughts. “Um, could you do me a favor?”
“Sure,” Zac said. “What is it?”
Corey shifted and pulled the notebook out from beneath her mattress. “Could you sign this as a witness?” she asked, holding it out to him.
Zac took it from her. “What is it?”
“My will.”
“Oh,” he said quietly. “Oh. You want me to - to sign your will?”
Corey couldn’t help but smile. “That’s the idea,” she said. “I need your signature for that to be legal. Actually, you’re suppose to have been present when I wrote it, but who’ll know the difference, right?”
“Right,” Zac agreed. “Could I have a pen or something?” he asked, flipping to the first page.
Corey picked up her light blue-flowered pen and handed it to him. “Thanks, Zac,” she said as he took it from her.
“No problem,” he assured her. Quickly, he scribbled his name on the paper and handed the notebook and pen back to her. “It’s a nice pen,” he observed.
She smiled. “Thanks.” After replacing the notebook and pen to their respective places, she looked up at him. “What did you guys have planned for today?”
“I don’t know,” he said. A smile crept across his face. “Whatever you want.”
