Gwendalynn: The Girl With Cancer

Gwendalynn | 13

"What?" I beamed.

"Kyle?" I heard a voice ask from behind Denise. I looked over her shoulder to see Gwen sitting in a wheelchair, out of her hospital gown.

"Gwen." I breathed.

"Hey!" She gave me a gentle smile before reaching her arms out to me. I bent down and gave Gwen a hug.

"Going home, huh?"

She nodded like a little five-year old girl.

I chuckled. "That's great." I reached for her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"I asked my parents if it was okay, and they said you can come with us to my house, just to hang out for a little bit."

I furrowed my eyebrows.

"Really?"

Her face faltered. "Oh, o-only if you want to, I mean, you don't have to, I was just thinking because I'll be bored and-"

I shook my head. "If it's okay with your parents." I smiled.

She smiled back.

Please God, let this be a sign she's getting better.

...

"Kyle, can you help with this bag, please?" Denise asked, grunting as she lifted the strap of another one of Gwen's bags from the hospital.

"Sure, Mrs. Conrad."

I walked toward the back of the Hybrid SUV and stood next to Denise. I wasn't sure what the bag was full of... It had to be some of the clothes Gwen might've left there or something, or maybe they were medical things. I didn't know, I just knew whatever was in the bag was pretty heavy.

I took it inside, not really sure where to put it. The Conrad house was average sized. I expected it to be a little smaller because of the three-person family, but it seemed just like any other house in San Francisco. I dropped the bag next to the door, hoping Denise wouldn't get irritated with where I put it.

I hurried back outside and asked Denise if my position with the bag was okay. She nodded and asked if I could help Gwen out. I was confused by this. Surely, she'd want to help Gwen, not her teenage friend who has feelings for her. I was pretty sure I made my feelings for Gwen pretty obvious.

I shook my head. No, maybe I haven't. It's better that way anyway.

I walked to the side of the SUV and opened the door. Gwen lay with her head against the seat, asleep. I smirked at her appearance. She looked absolutely adorable. I knew Gwen didn't weigh nearly as much as the bag, so I was certain that it'd be fine if I just carried her inside.

A lot of people would look at me with one glance and think I was a weak kid, but when you steal gallons of paint and stuff all the way to your house alone, you get quite the workout. I carried lots of things to the bridges whenever I was about to do graffiti. Usually, I wouldn't exactly know what I'd want to do, so I took multiple things to give me choices. How no one noticed and called the cops is beyond me.

I slithered my left arm under Gwen's torso and my right arm under her knees. I lifted her without struggle and took her to the front door.

Denise had left the door open thankfully. I walked inside with Gwen lying in my arms. She hadn't made any attempt to move or wake up, so I knew that I was being quite successful. Denise stood at the top of the stairs, wide-eyed.

"Where do I set her down?" I asked, hoping she wouldn't ask me how I'd gotten the strength to carry someone without such effort.

I wasn't going to lie to myself, I wasn't exactly carrying a feather. Gwen was still human. But the thing was, she has cancer; a kind where you can't exactly eat like a monster and gain so much weight. She definitely wasn't the weight she was supposed to be at nearly fifteen.