His only friend and love...

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

A week after Liam had told me everything, I couldn't stop asking myself why did Jake bully him, I mean, why was Liam bullied in his other schools? I didn't see anything wrong with him. He was handsome, he didn't have any extra limbs or anything like that. Maybe it was because he wasn't good with girl relationships or human relationships. I knew there was something else that Liam hadn't told me, something so embarrassing that he wasn't able to say it, but, what was it?

***

After winter brake, I was so exited to go back to school that even my mom said I was acting to weird.

"Honey, I've never seen you eating breakfast so fast. Actually, I've never seen you so exited and anxious to go to school. Not even when you were at preschool." My mum said slightly laughing and looking at me confused.

"Ooh, amm... Is just that... I-I need to tell something to my friends, you know, to Andy and Penny." I stutter a little bit and then hugged my mom, kissed her in the cheek and ran towards the door. "Well, I'm going now, see ya later mom" I said it so quickly that I couldn't even understand myself.

When I arrived to school, Andy and Penny were waiting for me at the school's front door. "Mery!" They shouted and hugged me. I almost fell. "Hi!" I said hugging them back. "Guys there's something I need to tell, but you must promise you won't tell anyone, ok?" I whispered so no one could hear me. "Yeah, obviously now tell us" Penny said in excitement. "Well, the week before the winter brake started, Liam and I went for a walk in the park" "Uuuy! Mery!" Andy interrupted me. She obviously knew I liked him, but it was so annoying! I mean I liked him, but I wasn't falling for him. "Shhhh! Andy, please! Well as I was saying, we went to the park and he told what happened to his eye. It was Jake. Jake bullies him apparently but he didn't tell me why." I said rising my voice just a little bit. "What?! Jake?! Your bully?" Penny said with a frightened tone. "Mariel, that can't be right. Are you sure?" Andy asked me. "Yes, completely. Liam wouldn't lie to me. Well whatever, I need to ask you a favor" "Yeah sure!" They both said. "I need you to help me find, what's the problem with Liam. It has to be something nobody can see, something no one knows." I said thinking of what it could be. "So, you want us to check his medical file, right?" Andy replied with a sort of a sarcastic tone. "That would be an option, Penny?" I asked looking at her, she was thinking pretty hard; as far as I could see. "Mery, do you remember how did he found out about, you know, your fake breast?" Penny asked. I had been trying to forget that for years, but now that Penny brought the theme... "Actually I do, isn't Jake the principal's nephew?" "I think so, yeah" Penny replied, nodding. "Well you know that principal Morgan gives special treatment and privileges to certain people, right?" "Yeah, now I understand why Trent" -the principal's son- "never fails." Andy replied in confirmation. "But Jake always fails math and history." Penny said in confusion. "Yes, I know. But when Jake bullies someone, it's usually because he knows something no one else knows. Something so personal that could only be in your medial files." I said with a funny look, almost like a grin. "Ohhh, like your prosthesis." Andy said out loud. I quickly covered her mouth with my hand "Yes, but shhhh!" I slowly removed my hand from her mouth. "So I'll ask Liam for more information, while you two think of a plan to get to his files, only if Liam doesn't tell me. Ok?" "Okey." They both said at the same time

*Flashback*

'A year ago'

My mom and I formed part of a campaign against breast cancer. We joined, because of the lack of knowledge and information there was about this kind of cancer, they couldn't detect the cancer tumor that my mom had and she wasn't treated on time. Because of this, my mom went into surgery and they had to her whole left breast. It was completely infected. This devastated her, because this meant that this could be in her genes and I could develop it at some point in my life.

Since then I checked myself every single day, while I took a bath, to be sure there was nothing abnormal; no balls or new moles. I was completely normal, so I progressively stopped to check myself.

One day I woke up with a strange pain in my right breast. But after a few minutes, it stopped. I went to the bathroom to have a shower, I checked my left breast: ok. I checked my right breast and I found a little ball that had never felt before, I turned off the shower and cleaned up the mirror so I could see my self. I saw a little spot, not a mole but a spot. Automatically, I ran to my mom in just my towel. "Mom, please come and see this!" I said as I pulled her wrist, guiding her to my room. I took of the towel and showed my mom the spot I had found this morning. "Touch, mom, touch there and tell me if you don't feel a little ball" I was about to cry when she just nodded in response. Obviously she had felt it. "C'mon, dress yourself. We're going to the doctor." My mom said while exiting my room.

When we arrived to Dr. Green's office, she told me to take of my shirt and bra. She explored my right breast and touched the little ball. "I really don't think it's cancer, it very normal to have that kind of balls at your age. There's nothing to worry about. And the little spot there, is just like a freckle, that's all." She said with a calmed tone. Relief ran through my body and mind. My mom thanked Dr. Green, and drove me to school.

A month after Dr. Green checked me, I felt that the 'normal ball' was growing and it was causing me great pain. "Mom" I whimpered in pain. "It hurts and it's getting bigger" she checked me and saw that the 'freckle' had become a mole. "I'll take you to emergencies." The trip didn't last long, the only thing that I remember is getting some kind of a tomography and that the doctor said that it was a cancer tumor. My mom cried like crazy, begging the doctor to do something. "We have to extirpate the tumor, but since it is so big; she'll loose her whole breast."

My mom cried even louder. When she calmed down, she gave her approval so I could have that tumor extirpated.

When I woke up, I ran my hand up my stomach, only to touch my left breast and my new scar. I withdrew from the touch because of the pain. A tear started forming in my eye, when the doctor came "The surgery was a success. The bad news is that, there was not enough skin left to put you an implant. But the good news is that you can wear this cosmetic prosthesis, so that no one can see the difference." He said while giving me the prosthesis. I touched it. It did look and felt like a breast. I started crying. "Thanks doctor, for saving me." I said as I hugged him tightly. "You're welcome" he replied hugging me back.

That same day, I returned to my house and tried the new prosthesis on. I put on my shirt again, and the image that I saw in the mirror impressed me. It seemed that I still had my two breasts. But just when I took my shirt off, reality punched me in the stomach; it was just a matter of time for someone to notice my lack of breast. So I decided to keep it secret. The only ones that could know were my friends and since this was going to go in my medical file, the school's principal would know too.

*End of Flashback*