TRAPPED

55

Celine
One week later

"I win." I say, smiling softly. I move my character off the board and sit back.

     "You're cheating." Julien says.

     "I'm not. You're just bad at the game."

     He rolls his eyes and takes his turn. I wait until they're all done before counting up my money, grinning when I realise I've won. We're back in England; I've had one chemotherapy appointment since we arrived back.

My dad walks into the living room and smiles. He walks over to me and kisses my forehead. "You guys okay?"

"Yeah." I respond. "I won again."

"She definitely cheated." Léo mumbles jokingly.

"Shut up. You can't cheat at The Game of Life." I respond.

My dad sits beside me. He wraps his arm around my shoulders and tucks me into his side. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine." I mumble, wrapping my arms around myself. I lean back on his arm, and he smiles again. Julien packs everything up before sitting on my other side, and Léo stays on the floor, eyes not leaving the television screen.

An hour passes before my dad checks his phone. "Let's get you into bed now, sweetheart."

     "It's not even eleven yet." I say.

     "I know, but it's important you get a good nights sleep." He says.

     "I'm watching the TV." I respond.

"You can watch it again tomorrow." He tells me.

     "Or I can just watch it now." I say.

     He sighs. "Twenty more minutes, okay?"

     I don't respond. He squeezes my shoulder and stands, walking out of the room.

"Can we watch something else?" Léo asks.

"We can when little CeCe goes to bed." Julien responds.

"Shut up." I snap.

He laughs. I yawn.

"Can you get me a drink?" I ask Léo.

"Sure." He says. He stands and walks out. A moment later he returns with a bottle of water. He passes it to me and sits where my dad was before.

"Thanks."

"It's okay." He responds. He grabs a blanket off the back of the couch and spreads it over me. "You need to stay warm, it's freezing outside."

"You sound like dad." I mutter.

"I don't." He responds.

"You do." Julien says.

I'm squashed between both of them now. Julien wraps his arms around me and pulls me so my back is laying on his stomach. I whine and try to pull away, but he doesn't let me go.