After The Heart Transplant, The Man Decided To Find The Relatives Of His Donor. When He Found Them…

Bruce was waking up from anesthesia and coming to his senses. At first, the man saw the whole world as a set of blurry images and outlines which were mostly white.

Only when Bruce finally managed to completely open his eyes did he realize that he was in a hospital room. Before the man had time to get to his bearings, a doctor wearing hospital scrubs and a white coat approached him.

The cardiac surgeon announced in a soft voice: “Congratulations, young man, your transplant surgery was successful and your life is no longer in danger. Just as we expected, the donor’s heart was a perfect match for you.”

Bruce carefully lifted his head and looked at the left side of his chest which was hidden behind a thick layer of gauze and bandages. Finally plucking up his courage, the man cautiously asked: “Dr. Matthews, sir, can I ask who my donor was?”

The doctor looked reproachfully at the patient, and his face immediately became serious: “Well, this is confidential information, of course, although if you really want to know, I can give you the donor’s name, but only if you promise that it will stay between us.”

Rupert Matthews said with an emphasis on the last word. Bruce hastened to assure the doctor: “Of course, of course, you have my word.”

The cardiac surgeon chuckled in response and promised the patient to give him information about his donor before he got discharged from the hospital. The doctor said goodbye and left the room: “In the meantime, you need to rest, young man. Sleep, read some books, and get used to your new heart. Now you got one that works perfectly.”

Seeing the heart surgeon off with his eyes, Bruce sighed sadly and thought about his past. Bruce Fletcher had recently turned 25, and most of his life he spent teetering on the brink of life and death.

Congenital heart disease was discovered too late. The first signs of the deadly condition only appeared when he was in elementary school.

Ever since then, Bruce often got excruciating spasms in his chest which eventually turned his life into a living hell. His parents, Pamela and Robert Fletcher, did everything they could to save their son.

Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, it only became possible a month ago. All this time, the family lived in fear every day that Bruce didn’t die, which was considered a real victory for the Fletchers.

And now, lying in a hospital bed and listening to the donor’s heartbeat in his chest, Bruce thanked the Lord for saving him. The man thought, wrinkling his forehead: “I wonder who that person was. What did he do? Did he have a family? Did he like to watch baseball games?”

But the more questions Bruce asked himself, the better he understood that the answers could only be found outside the hospital. The rehabilitation period dragged on very slowly, and by the time he was discharged, the man was already willing to escape the hospital even through the window.

To Bruce’s delight, Rupert Matthews kept his promise and gave him information about his donor. Clutching the piece of paper with information about the man whose heart saved his life, Bruce quickly read what he longed to know for so long.

“Howard Brooks, philosophy professor at the university. He died in a car accident and decided to become a donor shortly before his death,” Bruce read, moving his lips.

Upon learning the name of his savior, the man felt very uncomfortable. Bruce thought, putting the piece of paper in his bag: “A professor at the university, that’s something I’d expect the least of all. I thought my donor would either be a biker or some homeless person.”

The excited voices of his parents distracted the man from his painful thoughts. They drove up to the hospital to pick him up.

Robert Fletcher said happily: “Well, son, I’m so glad it’s finally over.”

Bruce’s mother hastened to remind her son: “But that doesn’t mean that your treatment is over. You still have to take your meds and come in for regular checkups for the next six months.”

Bruce smiled knowingly and winked at his father. Then the three of them walked out of the hospital together and headed for their Chevrolet that was parked in the hospital parking lot.

On their way home, Bruce told his parents that he had learned about his donor. But when Pamela Fletcher heard the name of her son’s savior, she felt clearly uneasy.

Bruce asked anxiously: “Mom, what’s wrong? You sick?”

But the woman had already pulled herself together and hastened to switch the conversation to a different topic. But this episode stuck to Bruce’s head and haunted him for several days to come.

The man worried about it for about two weeks. Having finally plucked up his courage, Bruce decided to ask his mother about Howard Brooks.

Mrs. Fletcher looked surprised at first and tried to avoid answering the question. But then, seeing how determined her son was, she realized that ignoring the question was no longer an option.

Pamela Fletcher whispered, stammering at every word: “I didn’t want to tell you, Bruce, but please try and understand me. The truth is that I had a relationship with Howard Brooks back when I was in college, but then we had a fight over something unimportant and broke up. I think it was partly because of his mother; the woman never really liked me.”

Having heard his mother out, Bruce got dizzy and his heart started racing. He didn’t know how to act in such a situation, so he simply went to his room to lay down.

Bruce thought, surprised at his own discovery: “So that’s what happened. I got my new heart from my mother’s ex-boyfriend.”

After this memorable conversation with her son, Pamela Fletcher chose not to return to it again and continued to act like nothing had happened. But Bruce wasn’t about to give up so easily.

He decided to find the relatives of Howard Brooks by all means possible. After all, it was his tragic death that gave him a chance at a normal life.

Turning to the help desk, the young man quickly found out the address where Mr. Brooks used to live. Meanwhile, Bruce felt some kind of elation all the time.

It seemed to the young man that his donor’s heart was like a compass guiding him where he needed to go. Bruce quickly found the house he needed on Park Street.

Mustering up his courage, the young man carefully pressed the doorbell. Nothing happened at first, but a couple of minutes later, he could hear someone’s quiet steps coming from the depths of the house.