Melvin Sneedly x Reader: Loathing

CHAPTER 8: Dawn

Melvin and (Y/N) walked side by side the very next morning, it was still dark out and the sun was still having its slumber. Last night's confrontation hinted that the both of them were determined to reconcile the relationship, and although (Y/N) never admitted it, she too, longed for this moment. 

"Sneedly." (Y/N) started, addressing him with little warmth. She swallowed her pride. "It wasn't right of me to treat you the way I did last night- and the years before that. I-I'm sorry." she looked away, feeling her insides stabbing at her. "And I..." she continued before he could respond. "I know I owe you more than just an apology. S-So if there's anything I can do..."

"Tell me what's going on." Melvin said. 

(Y/N) sighed, her fear of having to be the bearer of bad news became a reality. "I have fungal pneumonia." Melvin shuddered at her response. "It's quite funny, actually. It felt like my life was crumbling before me the moment you left, but it wasn't your fault, it was... simply awful timing." She chuckled in attempt to lighten up the mood, but Melvin stood in the middle of the empty street, collecting himself. 

"Your heart transplant..." He suddenly remembered. 

"Yeah... it turns out that that was the cause of my infection." 

"Have you been getting any treatment?" 

"I've been in and out of the hospital for a while now, yet... I don't seem to be getting any better. It was a miracle my breath wasn't short when I ran to school the other day... that should've killed me." 

"And you were willing to risk your safety for the sake of your grades?" 

"Hey." (Y/N) snapped. "Here I was expecting you, of all people, would understand-" 

"I don't." Melvin stared at the floral patterns on her lengthy skirt, slowly making his way to her eyes. "Sure,  you could argue that I'm also obsessed with maintaining my straight A's, but I'm an ill boy too, (Y/N). My heart may not be as weak as yours but we can both die from being careless-"

He paused. 

" I just choose not to."

The cold wind howled at the two kids wandering in the unpopular streets of Piqua. Their faces were pale with the harsh truth of reality lingering in their minds. One cannot change the perspective of the other, it was not the wise thing to (try to) do. But would it be better to end things here- now that the thick atmosphere had cleared between the two? 

Melvin sat under a nearby tree, holding his knees up to his chest as he was preparing for the worst. "You mentioned that you're running out of time." 

(Y/N) sat next to him and watched as the lonely darkness gradually faded into a beautiful dawn. They both desperately tried to admire the sunrise that smiled at the dry grass in the fields, its warmth curing the depressing essence of the night before. 

When the sunlight finally hit their young faces, (Y/N) leaned on his shoulder, his heart skipped a beat, she closed her eyes and calmly responded with, "It's actually really lovely out here."