Curing More than Cancer

Chapter 13

The room freezes at the admission. A thick silence settles around them. Kara's eyes are giant and unblinking as she realizes exactly what she just said to her boss. She watches as Andrea's mouth opens and closes a few times before she manages to whisper, "S- so, Dr. Kieran..."

Kara lets out a squeak before she bolts for the door. She can barely hear Andrea calling out for her as she rushes into her own office. Kara's back thuds against her own door as she buries her face in her hands. What did she just do? Why did she just do that? She hears loud knocks on her door. She sniffles and pushes herself up. She grabs one of her old messenger bags and starts stuffing her personal belongings into it.

"I- I'm coming. I don't need you to escort me out of the building," Kara mutters just loud enough.

Her office door swings open suddenly. "I didn't call security."

Kara's head shoots up. She figured that Andrea immediately called for HR and security to escort her out of the building.

"I'm going to try really hard not to be the bitchy boss for the next ten minutes," Andrea says quietly after shutting the door. "Kara, can we please talk about this?"

Kara stares at this woman in front of her. It's not the same person who's office she just stormed out of. This person looks... soft... caring, even. She stays frozen, hovering over her desk.

"Alright, how about I start, then? I know I'm a hardass. I push people. I push you. I push because it can get you to work harder. And yes, I care about the clicks because the clicks mean revenue. It means there are more people looking to Catco, even if it's not for news. They will be more likely to see the groundbreaking stories if they are looking in the first place. I know many don't agree with my methods, but my methods are working if anyone looks at the numbers. I've been so furious with you, Kara, because you are an astounding reporter. And you just... disappeared." Andrea lets the silence settle. "Okay, now it's your turn. I explained my behavior. Now, I need you to explain yours."

Kara blinks a few times. Did her boss just try to be... nice? Her notoriously cruel and quite frankly bitchy boss is being nice. She hears Andrea let out a sigh before seating herself in one of Kara's chairs. Blue eyes track the movement. She squints like it's a hallucination that her boss is sitting there, in her office, waiting patiently.

"Does it make it easier if I ask you questions instead?" Andrea breaks the silence.

Kara literally shakes her head slightly to come out of her stupor. She barely whispers out, "I'd rather not talk about it at all. That- that wasn't supposed to come out."

Andrea doesn't let up her penetrating gaze. She rests her elbow on the armrest and tilts her head into her hand. "Well, it's out now. And if you care at all about this job. If you want to keep this job, I'm going to need you to explain just a little bit more. It won't be repeated anywhere else. I won't put it in your employee file. No one will know about it other than me."

Kara looks down at her desk. She flops heavily into her chair as she lets out a heavy breath. "I had cancer. Now, I don't."

"I got that. When were you diagnosed?"

"A- a couple years ago."

Andrea's head jerks up with her eyes wide. Her employee flew under the radar for two years. Her best employee hid it for two years. "I know cancer is always serious... but... how serious?"

Kara pinches the bridge of her nose. She tries to hold back any tears. "The last round of treatment was Dr. Kieran's experimental trial. It- it was a last resort to keep it from... from..."