Chương 6: Lo no crees

"Dr. Suarez! May I speak with you?" Una called over. Dr. Suarez walked briskly, probably trying to break free from the ward and escape to lunch. The annoyance flew from her face when she recognized Robin and Una Martillo. There was a chess game set up between them while they waited for lab results.

"Yes, of course." Dr. Suarez surrendered her plans and smiled at Robin.

"I'll be right back," Una assured him.

"Take a look at your position here. There's something good you can do.

"Okay Tita." Una left Robin to ponder his position and walked with Dr. Suarez. The doctor's office was small and tidy, without a mote of dust or a single thing out of place. Her degrees and awards were hung on the left wall. They were vastly outnumbered by pictures of her two daughters and three dachshunds. On the right wall were pictures of Dr. Suarez hugging her patients—the lucky ones. Above the door was a crucifix, perhaps for those less fortunate. All these things made Una like and trust Dr.

Suarez, but the most important thing was that she could speak Spanish. Even now, after so many years in the States, it was hard to speak of emotional things in Inglés (English).

"How is he?" Dr. Suarez asked, as she looked over Robin's chart. Una scrutinized her face for the tiniest sign of a reaction.

"Not good. I have to force him to eat and it's exhausting for both of us. I made him keep a log, as you asked. He doesn't sleep well. Lots of nightmares and vomiting in the night."

"Those are all normal, unfortunately. It's a difficult treatment, but it's the best we have. Is he speaking with a counselor?"

"Yes. I feel like they aren't getting through. Es como un barco sin vela. (He is like a ship without a sail.) He drifts through each day with a shadow over him. His mother died just after Christmas. He's in a new city with no friends and no family but me."

"How is he at church?"" Lo no crees, (He doesn't believe,)" Una admitted. The two women shared a look.

"His mother," Una explained. Dr. Suarez nodded. She understood. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"Keep trying. Faith helps so much. This is more than anyone can bear on their own, especially a child. How was he doing at school before he got sick?"

"Barely passing. It drove me crazy. That boy is so bright. He'll read anything you put in front of him. He remembers everything. But at school, he's useless. He just daydreams all the time and never does the work. That's if you can even get him to go. When Robin lived with us, Hector had to bring him to the school, watch him go inside, and then circle the block and catch him when he tried to sneak off. It's all his mother's fault. Lucinda let him run wild.

He spent so long taking care of himself, he thinks he's an adult. Before he got sick, I couldn't tell him anything."

"Does he play an instrument?"

"No."

"Any hobbies?"

"He used to play fútbol with his friends, they were all hinchas (super-fans) for Cruz Azul. Now, he can only listen to games on the radio. He says he misses his friends and he doesn't think he'll ever play again."

"Where are the friends?"

"All back in Amarillo. You don't want to see my phone bill. But lately, not so much. Boys don't keep in touch. He hasn't made any new friends since he came to live with me. He was only in school for a little bit before he got sick."

"That's a problem. Robin needs something to keep him going. Friends, family, or faith. The most important thing in treatment is hope. Any interest you see in him, encourage it."

"I've been teaching him chess. It's waking him up a bit. He's very competitive. Once we began to play for real and he started to lose, he looked like his whole world had fallen apart. He wouldn't even speak to me afterward. I put a stop to that right away and told him to take his loss like a man. Martillos don't do that. He's doing better now, but I can see it in his eyes. That boy hates to lose."

"That's good! That spirit will help him so much. Robin is lucky to have you to care for him. What about you? How are you doing?"

"Better than him." Una shrugged.

"Don't forget about yourself in this. It's easy to exhaust yourself while you're being strong for someone else. You have to care for Una, too. Make sure you're eating and sleeping well. Don't ask more from yourself than you're capable of." Una took a deep breath and swallowed the unkind thing she wanted to say. It was hard to have a younger woman talk to her this way. She means well, Una told herself. She looked at the wall that was covered in photos of patients in remission.

The doctor knew what she was talking about.

"Thank you, Dr. Suarez." Robin's eyes were closed when she came back, but he was still awake. The chess board was unchanged.

"Did you find it?" Robin opened his eyes. With a little smile, he moved his knight to F7. Her queen and rook were caught in a fork.

"Very good," Una said. The little smile faded.

"Are you letting me win?"

"Oh, you think you'll win?" Una smiled. She moved her queen.

"Take the rook, see what happens." He took her rook. She moved her queen again, onto the file with Robin's king.