I froze. A divorce? Was this really it?
Just then, Michael’s phone rang. He answered it, and his face instantly changed.
“What? Okay. We’re on our way.”
He hung up and looked at me, his face ashen.
“Jake’s been in an accident. He’s in surgery at the hospital.”
My mind went blank. Nothing else mattered. I scrambled after Michael as he bolted out the door. On the way to the hospital, he gripped the steering wheel so hard his knuckles turned white.
“He’ll be okay.”
My voice was trembling.
“Jake will be okay.”
Michael did not answer. He just pressed harder on the gas.
At the hospital, Sarah was standing outside the emergency room holding Noah, her eyes red and swollen from crying.
“Mom. Dad.”
She sobbed the words the second she saw us.
“Jake… he was hit by a car, saving a little kid who ran into the street.”
My knees buckled and I nearly fell. Michael caught me, then walked straight over to the surgeon.
“Doctor, how is my son?”
The doctor pulled down his mask, his face grave.
“The patient is seriously injured. We’re doing everything we can.”
He paused.
“But there’s something I have to tell you. He’s lost a lot of blood and needs an immediate transfusion. He has a rare blood type, and our bank is low.”
“Rare blood type?”
Michael stared at him.
“What type?”
“B negative.”
The doctor looked between us.
“It’s very uncommon. Does anyone in the family have this type? A direct donation would be fastest.”
Michael and I looked at each other.
“I’m O positive.”
Michael said it first.
“I’m O positive too.”
I was stammering now.
“Then the patient’s blood type should be…”
The doctor flipped through the chart, then stopped.
“Wait a minute. Genetically, if both parents are type O, it’s impossible for their child to be type B.”
The air in the hallway turned to ice. I looked at Michael. His face was deathly white.
“Are you both certain you’re type O?”
The doctor sounded confused.
“Certain?”
Michael’s voice was barely a whisper.
The doctor frowned, about to say something else, when the operating-room doors burst open.
“We need a family member.”
A nurse called it out urgently.
“The patient is critical. We have to get him blood now.”
“I’ll contact the blood bank again.”
The surgeon turned to leave.
“Wait.”
Sarah suddenly spoke up.
“I’m B negative. Take mine.”
The doctor paused, then nodded.
“Okay. We’ll prep you immediately. Come with me.”
