Extrait

My name is Bristol. I’m Hope’s sister, and I hope that your recovery is going well. I thought maybe you’d like to know a bit about the woman whose heart you received because, frankly, she was pretty awesome. Hope was in medical school and planning to become a trauma surgeon, which pretty much put the rest of the family to shame for our career choices. I basically serve coffee for a living, and my older sister is an attorney who specializes in divorce, but Hope has been saving lives since she became an EMT at eighteen.

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Of course, that’s not the whole picture. She loved cats, the fatter the better. She hated sweet potatoes with a passion. She had zero interest in fashion and makeup, which the rest of the family joked was her primary reason for wanting to be a doctor. She owned more sets of scrubs than t-shirts. Hope loved slapstick comedy, and she snorted when she laughed. She loved to sing, even though she had the opposite of talent. She didn’t have much time to read or watch TV, but when she did find the time, she preferred scary books and shows and then slept with the lights on.

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Her favorite food was chocolate anything, and when she was a little girl, she wanted to be a garbage man when she grew up. She took ballet until she broke out in a spontaneous breakdancing routine in the middle of a recital when she was seven. She made the best pecan pie the world has ever known, and she once fell down the stairs running away from a bird that hopped through an open window in our parents’ house.

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So the reason I’m writing is two-fold. I thought you might like to know something about your new heart, and I’m back to that favor.

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My older sister is getting married between Thanksgiving and Christmas. She considered postponing it, but to be honest, our family could use a shot of happiness. It would mean the world to all of us if you would consider attending the wedding. The ceremony will take place at Hope Falls Community Church at 4 p.m. on December 15, and the reception will be a huge party afterwards at Mountain Ridge Convention Center.

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I hope you’ll consider joining us. Meeting you and knowing that our sister lives on through you would be the best Christmas present I could ask for. But no pressure. Okay, maybe a little bit of pressure. Just kidding. If I don’t hear back from you, I completely understand. There’s something to be said for only looking forward in life, and I hope that your future is full of love, happiness, and all good things.

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Hopefully yours,

Bristol Quinn

P.S. If you develop a sudden craving for putting ruffled potato chips on your peanut butter and jelly sandwich, that’s all Hope.