An Open Heart

"Hurry up Ally, we are going to be late! "My mom says, shoving my backpack over my shoulders.

"Ok, ok I'm going." I say as I set the alarm and walk out into the garage.

"What time are we supposed to be there anyways?" I ask as my mom starts backing out of the garage.

"9:30" My mom says looking at her watch. "We are so going to be late." She says again starting to speed.

"Mom calm down, It doesn't take an hour to get there. It's only 8:30. Besides, you always have to wait forever in Doctor's Offices."

"Well what if there's traffic, what if there's a car accident, what if-"

"What if the sky falls, what if we all grow two heads and have six eyes. You need to calm down, we'll be there on time."

"Your right." My mom says giving me a quick squeeze and turning on the radio. Just as we get on the freeway.

"I know I'm right," I think to myself. I don't even know why we are going here. It's just a heart murmur. Nine times out of ten they are "Innocent" and aren't harming you in any way. You go on living your life just as you have. The Doctor will prepare an Echocardiogram. They'll just put some gel on my chest and place the camera on and see my perfectly healthy heart.

Of course, I could be that one percent... I could have heart cancer, heart disease, a heart defect or- I cut my thoughts just as we arrive.

"See" I say as we walk in. "I told you we wouldn't be late." I say to my mom she just rolls her eyes and walks up to the receptionist.

"Hi, we are here for an Echocardiogram." My mother tells the girl.

"Great!" She responds a little too peppy. "That's on our fifth floor, here's a map in case you get lost." She says handing my mom the map. "Thanks so much." My mom calls as we walk away.

"This place is huge!" My mom says looking at the map. "15 flores, WOW!" She says a little too loud as we walk down a long white hallway to the elevator. We walk out of the elevator and turn into the third room on the right.

Room B-6

Flore five

Echocardiogram

The waiting room is much smaller than I would have thought for an bilding this big. We check in and take a seat next to a little boy who is sleeping on his mother's lap.

"Hello." The boy's mother whispers to us, careful no to wake her baby.

"Hello." My mother echoes, tapping the finger nail on the chair. 

The lady notices. "First time here?" She asks.

"Yes, how'd you know?" My mother asks.

"I've been coming here since this little guy was two months old." She says readjusting him in her arms.

"Ow, I'm sorry." My mom asks, turning to face the lady completely. "If you don't mind me asking what's wrong with his heart?"

"He has Ventricular septal defect or VSD. It is a birth defect of the heart that happens when there is a hole in the septum that separates the two lower chambers of the heart."

"Is it serious?" My mother asks pating the boys back.

"Yes, but he is scheduled for heart surgery next week. Which will hopefully take care of it." She says streaking the boy's hair.

"Well, we wish you both the best of luck." My mom says smiling.

"Thank you." The lady says. "So-

"Ally Smith" The Doctor in the doorway calls.

My mom and I stand up quickly and we walk into an even smaller room with lots of medical equipment. The Doctor hands me a gown and sanitary wipes to clean my chest with and says he'll be back in five minutes.

"Lie down on the table Ally." He instructs me after I'm all suited up. He applies the gel and places the camera on my chest.

"You might feel a bit of pressure, but it's the only way to get the best picture to run tests on." He says.

"That's ok," I tell him.

"So why are you here? Do you have any pressure on your chest, shortness of breathing, trouble-"

"No, nothing like that. I just have a tiny heart murmur." I say quickly.

"Alright, then we should have you out of here soon." He says with a smile and goes back to work.

After he is done he tells us that I can change back into my normal clothes and he'll be back with the test results.

15 minutes later he is back.

"So" He says, this time looking directly at my mom. "Is there any history of Heart defects in your or your husbands family?"

"No, why?" My mom says surprised.

"Well, I am sorry to tell you, but your daughter has a heart defect that is called ASD, which stands for Atrial Septal Defect. This is causing a 35 millimeter hole in her heart. It is amazing that she is even alive. She will need to undergo major open heart surgery."

I freeze.

"What did he say?" I think to myself. 35 mill- Open what? Surgery? "Amazing she's even alive." He said.

"Ally-" My mom starts to say. "Ally-" She tries to take my hand.

But I can't hear her, I can't hear anything. I try to stand up.

"Ally I know that this is shocking news, but you need to sit down. There are a lot of things we need to discuss." The Doctor says reaching for my hand to sit me down. But I don't listen. What am I going to do? I can't have Heart Surgery. This isn't happening. In a few moments I'm going to wake up in my bed, at home, from this nightmare. Yeah, this is just a dream…Why do I suddenly feel so sick? Why is the room spinning? Why can't I breathe? Why-

I black out.

*I hope you enjoyed this story. Everything that happens in this story is true other than the blacking out part (Believe me I thought I would). This happened to me when I was 12 and I did have open heart surgery. It was long and hard, and the recovery was painful. But, my heart is healthy and I am living each day as the gift that it is. I hope this gives you hope to keep going on and be the best you that you can be! If you have any questions for me or suggestions for my next story please leave them in the comments!*