KATY, Texas — It's a bond beyond blood.
Two total strangers will soon be linked for life through one's selfless sacrifice.
KHOU 11 first met Ricky King last year. He was looking for a kidney and telling the world he needed help.
Today, he's met the man who's giving him his life back.
Sipping sweet tea over casual conversation, the relationship between Armando Llanes and King runs deeper than you’d think.
For starters, they’re neighbors, on the same street, two houses down.
But also, that duck King’s eating was actually made by Llanes. He’s studying to be a chef, and this is culinary school.
But the bond gets thicker.
You see, besides preparing his neighbor lunch, Llanes is also offering King his kidney.
"I was fortunate that I moved to the right location at the right time," King said.
We talked to King last year, three days before Christmas.
Battling a rare disease, his only Christmas wish was a new kidney. So desperate for a donor, he even printed that wish onto his rear car window.
“I needed a kidney, point blank. The outlook wasn’t great," King said.
That sign caught the eye of Llanes.
“So I just knocked on his door, introduced myself, welcomed him to the neighborhood," Llanes said.
Brought to tears by the mere thought King would remain without a donor, Llanes said it was an instant decision to offer his.
“My son plays with his son. It hits to the core," Llanes said.
Because beyond all of this, the two share one more bond: they’re veterans. Llanes served in the army for 8 years, and King retired after 24.
That’s why he’s doing this.
“We will never leave a fallen soldier. We’re going to take care of our own if it needs to be," Llanes said.
Llanes' kidney won’t go directly to King, but in a four-way swap, another’s donation will give King his life back on Dec. 17.
“I know he’s going to take full advantage of it and enjoy his retirement," Llanes said.
Just in time for Christmas, only a year late.
“He’s giving me my life back and more, actually. I really appreciate him for doing that. He didn’t have to, but he stepped up and did it anyways," King said.
The two men who sit across the table have gone from strangers to neighbors.
“It’s that brotherhood. That’s deep, embedded in each of us," King said.
Today, they’re brothers.
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