Free The Outback Heart by Fiona Palmer Page B

Gerry’s last year in primary school. It had been really touching to have them all there for him. It was all still a bit new and weird. Trying to sleep with the noise from the LVAD had been difficult, but at least the noise let him know that his heart was pumping and that he was still alive. He’d never forget Freddie’s expression when he first saw Troy lying there in the hospital bed. His face was even paler than usual.
    ‘Far out, Troy. You gave me a heart attack.’
    ‘Yeah, well, I almost lost mine,’ he’d replied and they’d both cracked up laughing.
    ‘So, you need to have this device in until you can get a donor heart, right?’ Freddie asked.
    ‘Yep. I have to wait for the right donor though.’
    ‘Shit, mate. That’s heavy.’ Freddie had run his hand through his thick red hair, a forlorn look on his face. ‘What about sports? Can you still play . . .’ The unspoken word had hung in the air like a thick fog.
    It had been one of the first things Troy had asked when he had come around. Could he still play? He hadn’t liked the reply.
    ‘Ah. I can play sport, just not contact sports.’ Troy watched Freddie waiting for it to register. Freddie looked confused. ‘It means no more football.’
    ‘For real?’ Freddie went silent, trying to process the news. He was the one person who really understood the love Troy had for football. ‘Dude, I’m so sorry. We were going places in footy, mate. You at the Eagles, me at Freo.’
    As much as it hurt Troy to talk about it, he knew Freddie would understand what a cruel blow this was. Nothing could have hurt Troy more. His dream of becoming an AFL star had died the moment his heart had.
    ‘You have to focus on the fact that you’re alive,’ his mum had said. ‘You can still watch a game of football, and you might even take up cricket.’ Her words had done nothing to stem his tears that first night he’d realised his dream was gone.
    Now he was just numb from it all. Somewhere in the back of his mind he still believed he could get back out on the grass and play. And it helped that Freddie had been in to visit often, sometimes bringing other mates from school. He had heaps of cards and messages from everyone at school and back in Geraldton.
    When he could finally talk the first thing Troy had said to his parents was, ‘I’m sorry.’ He’d felt tired, he’d felt responsible for pulling his parents away from the farm and all the way down to the city, and he felt he was to blame for their sleepless nights and their worried looks. In the first week they had hardly left his bedside – and Troy knew just what damage a week away from the farm could do.
    ‘You have nothing to be sorry for, son. This is not your fault,’ his dad had said. ‘And your mother’s right. We’ll get through this. We’re just so happy that you’re here with us. Nothing else matters.’ He’d sniffed back his tears and smiled.
    A soft knock at the door snapped Troy out of his deep thoughts.
    A girl with raven hair and a big smile knocked on the door again but she was already standing inside his room. ‘Um, Troy, right? I’m Peta. May I come in? Is now a good time?’
    ‘Sure, come in. Hi. Niki told me you would be coming by.’
    Peta bounced in on her toes. She dragged a chair up to his bed and sat beside him, leaning on his bed like they were old friends. She did it with such ease, not like everyone else that had come to visit him with their hands fidgeting, all anxious, eyes searching the alien room. Peta was different. She was calm and comfortable, just like the nurses around here.
    ‘Hiya, Troy. So I hear that you had an LVAD put in. Nice. I had one too.’
    ‘Have you got a donor heart now?’
    ‘Yep and it’s working beautifully,’ she said, tapping her chest gently.
    She smiled again and already Troy was smitten. Peta had to be older than him but by only a year or two. She’d been through the exact same thing, and she was alive. Her deep ebony eyes sparkled