Free The Heart of Revenge by Richie Drenz

the game in total
concentration playing to beat his last highest score all the way
till the small hours of the morning. He had the proudest smile that
shone on a young child’s face whenever he made a new high score - his joy - his complete happiness . Also that March, Mom
found out that he had a heart that would kill him. He would be dead
before he was thirty-six. She cried so much tears, she soaked the
bosom of her blouse straight through. You could wring her eye water
out of her blouse. She held the news, contemplated for seven days
if she should say it to Vance or not. He was the happiest child on
earth. She had a hard time getting enough strength and courage to
tell her twelve year old son his heart was going to kill him. She
cried while telling him and later that evening she cursed Dad for
two hours straight. She was crying her eyes out while she cursed
him for turning up the TV too loud. Vance didn’t cry when he got
the news and he didn't smile either. He never played his game that
night, the day after nor ever again - his joy - his complete
mourn .
    What’s happening with his heart was that his
heart muscles were overgrown. It’s growing too fast, getting bigger
than it should normally be and if he didn’t get a surgery to cut
away the excess muscle-growth from his heart then the upper and
lower ventricles would grow too big and completely cut off his
blood circulation to and from his heart. His heart condition is
known as cardiomyopia but Vance simply called it an overgrown heart
or the red hearse in his chest.
    Dr. Reid quoted the cost of his surgery in
U.S. dollars. It was nineteen thousand U.S. dollars and he needed
to get an ICD (Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator) which would
help to regulate his heartbeat. The ICD would use electrical shocks
to slows down his heart when it went too fast and speeded it up
when it went too slow. Basically, keeping it at a normal pace and
preventing sudden cardio attacks that persons with his heart
condition were prone to having. But more importantly, the sooner he
got one of these ICD implanted the longer he may live. The cost to
have the ICD surgically placed in his chest, was twelve thousand
U.S. dollars. A total of thirty-one thousand U.S. dollars. Mom
didn’t have ten thousand Jamaican dollars in her account and her
U.S account was closed with a small balance that was on the minus
side after the bank deducted its maintenance charges. Dad had less
money than Mom.
    Vance’s heart was big in other ways too.
Despite the fact that he would be dying the same age as Jesus
Christ, but without the resurrection, he always smiled. Whether it
was to hide his pain and concern from everyone or it was genuine,
only he could tell.
    Vance spent most of his time on non-strenuous
activities such as at the Help the Youths Club (H.Y.C.), and in the
garden next door that Ms. Merl had. He seemed to get a sense of
relief being with nature and just nurturing it. He wanted to start
a garden at home for himself but our yard didn't have the space.
Ms. Merl’s garden had sunflowers, daffodils, poinsettias, roses and
more. It was a beautiful array of colors and Vance played a huge
part in keeping it beautiful.
    No one at HYC or even Ms. Merl knew he had a
fatal heart condition. Vance hid his terminal condition from
everyone, not wanting to burden anyone and too proud to take a
crumb of pity from a soul.
    His favorite channel was GOLTV, he’d watch
football till his eyes bled a football-field but when his friends
passing by the house kicking a soccer ball to each other, dressed
in jersey shorts, tightly laced football boots and old sneakers,
his brethren, Patrick, was always the one to stop by our gate and
holler,
    “Yow! Sissy Vance, you not kicking some
ball?”
    Vance would snatch up the remote, aimed it at
the tv and hold down the volume button till it was close to mute.
This was his way of hurriedly shoving the sound of the football
match he was watching on tv and hiding it behind