Chasing Shadows (Jaylor Fanfiction)

The Lakes

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At this point, I am no longer a patient. I am in the waiting room as a loved one. Joe is sitting next to me, holding my hand.

"It shouldn't be taking this long. Why is it taking so long-this is-she's gonna die. What if she's dead?" I say panicking.

"She'll be fine. She's Piper."

"But what if she isn't?" I say somberly.

I hear doors open and it's one of the oncologist that had been working on Piper's case. I go to the doctor as quickly as possible...which isn't fast.

"Is she okay?"

"Piper's tumor had caused her to have a grand-mal seizure. She seized for 51 minutes."

"Is that how long they usually last? Is that normal?"

"Most seizures are under 5 minutes. If a seizure goes over 5 minutes, brain damage occurs."

"But she's fine."

"Piper is brain dead. She's hooked up to ventilators which are the only things keeping her alive."

"And are you gonna make her brain alive again?"

Joe steps in front of me and puts his hands on my shoulders. "Taylor, she's gone. She's dead."

"Why can't you fix her? Help her! This is a hospital! It's 2024! Fix her!"

"They can't!" Joe practically yells at me.

"No! She promised me!"

"She's gone."

"No! No she isn't!" I shove Joe away and begin crying.

"Come here." I try and shove him away again but he hugs me tightly. I try and escape the hug but I end up breaking down to a where I can't fight and find comfort. I rest my head on his shoulder and he runs his hand through the back of my hair.

After a few moments of me ugly crying, the doctor is still standing there. "There's another thing...you're her Power of Attorney."

"What?" I say through my tears.

"In a case like this, she wanted you to decide what to do."

"What am I supposed to do?" It's a stupid question as I know what a POA does but I'm in a panic.

"Follow me." He says. We all walk into a hospital room where Piper is laying down. A tube is shoved down her throat which sounds very uncomfortable I must say. I walk over and sit on a chair next to her bed. I pick up her hand and hold it.

"Piper didn't specify what she wanted." Her doctor says.

"Is she eligible for organ donation?" I ask.

"Yes. The cancer didn't spread past her brain stem."

"She was the nicest person I've met in a really long time. She would have wanted to help other people."

"Okay. We can go over those details."

"Can I stay with her just-before you do...can I have a moment with her?"

"Sure."

"Do you want me to stay?" Joe asks.

"No."

Joe nods and leaves with the doctor on the case. "Hey Piper...I know you said you would stay...but you can go." I wipe tears off my face and look at her lifeless eyes. I take my shaking hand and close them.

"I'm so sorry. You-you had so much hope. You had so many dreams. All I did was ruin shit. It-it should have been me. I should have died, not you. You were innocent. I-I am so sorry."

For the first time, I realized this wasn't a book or perfect tv show. I could actually die.

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Hello, I finally updated! I love to write on planes since it passes so much time. But this chapter was DEPRESSION!!!

Happy holidays to y'all! So happy to finally update. College is killing me 😭

Word count: 1,127