Lazarus Venti couldn't recall much about his childhood because, as he thought, there was nothing to recall. He moved through his grade school and junior high as a spectator, watching his life pass him by like a person viewing a television show, laughing at some things and smiling at the right times, but not really participating. The only time he felt comfortable was when his uncle Jack came to visit his home.

His uncle was a large man. He told extravagant and highly entertaining stories. He was a doctor on a cruise ship that went to different and exciting locations.

Uncle Jack had cruise tours on both sides of the west and east coasts. Lazarus only saw Uncle Jack when he was in California and only for a few hours. His mom was always concerned about Uncle Jack's safety. They constantly squabbled about him going on another cruise. She thought he should find a job at the nearest hospital and settle down. Uncle Jack always laughed at her, stating that he was happy gallivanting around the world seeing exotic locations and sometimes, when his parents and Uncle Jack thought he was out of earshot in his room, Lazarus would listen and hear Uncle Jack talk about his many girlfriends he had in these distant ports. His dad always laughed at these stories.

Besides these fun visits from his uncle, Lazarus saw his own life punctuated with boring situations and happenings. He never had many friends and he pretty much stayed to himself. He liked math and history in school and had good grades in everything. Lazarus felt he was unremarkable. His parents had him take up baseball, touch football, soccer and a gamut of other sports. He was not good at anything athletic. They even encouraged him to play an instrument, the flute, but he was not good with that as well. He was an average kid with an average mind.

His mom talked to him once about Uncle Jack. They had finished dinner and his dad walked over to the living room to watch TV. The sound of a comedy sitcom sounded in the house, laughter and people talking excitedly.

His mom took a few plates away to the kitchen and then came back to him. Lazarus was about to go to his room and read a Justice League comic he bought the day before with his allowance money when his mom said, "Lazarus, I know you idolize your Uncle Jack. But I don't want you to end up like him."

"What, Mom? Uncle Jack seems happy."

"You were just like your Uncle Jack when he was your age. He didn't have many friends. I always tried to help him in school."

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Lazarus was feeling uncomfortable about this conversation. "Mom, why are we talking about Uncle Jack?

She sat closer to him. "Your Uncle Jack is in the hospital. He has cancer."

"What? But he’s a doctor. Shouldn't he know?"

"Yes, he did. But, son, cancer is sneaky. Sometimes a healthy person has cancer and doesn’t know."

His mom placed a hand on his arm. He didn't know she was holding his arm. She didn't say anything to him. Maybe she was waiting for him to do something, or cry.

In a daze, Lazarus looked up. He saw his dad standing in the hallway. His dad, usually a loud and gregarious man, stood mute. They all looked at each other for a few seconds. The sound of the television sounded loud and the laughter sounded forced and unbelievable.

His father cleared his throat. "Uncle Jack is at the hospital downtown. We can still make it to visiting hours, if you want to see him."

"Yes!" He was startled at his voice.

His mom nodded. They ended up at the hospital half past seven, well past the time posted for visiting hours, but the attendant at the desk waved them through toward the elevators. Lazarus didn’t understand this then, but years later when his mind was able to accept the futility of life he realized that the nurse let them through after visiting times because his uncle was dying, and the nurses always let relatives visit their loved ones if the time was dire.

Lazarus and his parents entered a white room with two beds in them. The light was closed. He saw his uncle lying on the bed at the far corner. The other bed was empty. His uncle's eyes were closed, but he opened them when they came inside. Uncle Jack had lost a lot of weight since he had last seen him. His skin sagged on his face and arms.

"Hello, my favorite nephew is here."

Uncle Jack smiled and Lazarus gave him a hug.

He said, "Will you be fine?"

"Sure I am. This is nothing. I’m here for some minor stuff."

Lazarus heard his mom crying softly behind him and knew this was bad.

"Are you sure? Cancer is bad."

"I can beat it. Don't you worry. It was like the time when I helped the people on board my cruise ship. These doctors here are top notch. I need to talk to your mom for a second."

Lazarus went outside and waited in the hallway a few feet away from the nurse'sstation. His dad sat close to him. Lazarus watched the nurses moving back and forth down the hallways. He felt numb, wondering why they had to be here at this time of night. They could have come here tomorrow.

"Dad," he said, "will Uncle Jack be fine?"

His dad took a while to say anything. "Your mom will be mad that I told you. But you are old enough to understand. It doesn't look good. He is having emergency surgery tomorrow to try to take out the cancer. He has a fifty-fifty chance. You are not going to school tomorrow."