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“Hi honey,” I greet her when she descends the stairs and comes to stand beside me.
“Hi, dad,” she responds as she clutches a sizable tote bag I'm certain is filled with her drawing materials. It is the only thing that truly calms her.
“Are you ready?”
“I still don't know why we need to visit the hospital. I don't think anything is wrong with me.” She informs me as she gazes up at me with eyes the same hazel color as mine. It is the one thing she has taken after me.
“That's it, honey. There's absolutely nothing wrong with you. You're amazing. But they're certain, um, things we need to be sure of.”
“Like?” She questions, her eyes going dark with suspicion.
I gulp a little.
She looks exactly like her mother when she furrows her brows like that.
“I think the doctor will do a better job of explaining than I ever could. So why don't we head there so he can do the explaining to us?”
Callie looks to be thinking about it for a minute and then decides she is okay with that. She follows me out the door and toward our waiting car where we ride in comfortable silence. I can tell that my little girl is nervous, so I try not to force conversation.
Fifteen minutes later, my driver, Robert, pulls into the parking lot of the lavish hospital that looks more like someone's private home. I love the exterior immediately and know we will have privacy. Sam did a good job of looking them up and ensuring that we were scheduled in to meet the doctor today. However, it wasn’t that hard. All Sam needed to do was say my name for the doctor to instantly agree.
I get out of the car as soon as it comes to a stop and round the car to pull it open for Callie. She steps down and looks around, trying to take everything in all at once.
“This place doesn't look like a hospital, dad.” She observes as we begin to make our way toward the door.
“That's the whole point.” I chuckle.
The receptionist is a woman who appears to be in her midtwenties. She must have been informed of our arrival because she immediately smiles and directs us to the doctor's office. I take Callie's small hand in mine and walk with her to the doctor's office. I do notice how tightly she grips my hand and looks around nervously.
“Are they going to like, stitch different things in me and poke my body with instruments?” She questions with apparent fear in her eyes.
I know she's asking this because of the time she caught the flu and had different tests and physical examinations conducted on her.
I stop walking and hold her shoulder firmly in place as I stoop so that we are at eye level.
“No one is going to stitch anything in you, okay? I believe the doctor is only going to ask you a couple of questions.”
Callie, seemingly assured, nods, and we continue our walk to the doctor's office where the man greets us with a smile.
"Glad you could make it on such short notice," The doctor, Frederick Langley, says as he gives us a wide smile.
I nod in return and make myself comfortable on one of the chairs.
“Can I offer you anything?” The doctor asks as he takes his own seat, hands clasped together on his desk.
“I am fine,” I tell him. Then, turning to Callie, I inquire, “Is there anything you want?”
But she shakes her head no.
I observe how closely the doctor watches her. I can't help but wonder if he can diagnose her by just being in the same room with her.
“Alright then. Let's get on with it.” The doctor says and walks us through casual questions, throwing in jokes that appear to make Callie more and more comfortable.
I don't know what the hell the doctor did, but the fact that Callie is completely relaxed in his presence has me completely relaxed too. I'm not even aware of the amount of time that has passed until the doctor checks the time and gives us a grin.
“Thank you for spending these last couple of hours with me. I'm afraid that will be all for today.” The doctor informs us.
I am a little surprised. All we did was listen to Callie talk about all the things she loves to do and how her classes are going.
