Cancer

Time - Chapter Six

~Cameron~

(Slight trigger but not major)

    "Can you please just let me in?" I hear a voice sing outside of my window. My head snaps up from my nearly finished art work to see - an oddly dressed - Athena outside my window. Her hair is a curly mess of tangles and color, and her Captain America pajamas don't help her look any less insane. Especially since she's outside of my window, on the second floor. And it's like ten o'clock.

    I stand so I can reach the latches on my window and push it up, giving her a look. "What are you doing here?" I ask in a whisper. She puts her feet on my window sill and launches into the room, landing on my floor with barely a sound. I stare at her with a bewildered look before shutting the window back. She sends me a smile.

    "I just wanted to come over." She replies happily. I send her another bewildered look.

    "How do you know where I live?" I almost shout. I quickly lower my voice so that no one hears me. More so that he won't hear me.

    "I'm magical." She says simply, like it should be obvious. I stare at her blankly, outrageous amounts of sarcastic replies surfacing in my mind. "Okay... I Googled you." She admits.

    I look at her in surprise. "You... Googled me?" I repeat, bewilderment lacing my words. She nods happily.

    "Yep, super easy too. I've got skills."

    Before I can sarcastically reply, I hear something drop form downstairs, yelling following close behind. I wearily wipe my eyes as I catch "Stupid woman!" being yelled. My heart jumps into my throat as my head snaps to the door.

    "Oh no..." I groan out softly, and I look over at Athena. She still looks super happy as she points to the door.

    "Does that happen a lot?" By now I'm pretty used to her mood swings, so it doesn't phase me.

    "More than you can believe." I mutter, before hearing cheering distantly from downstairs. Quickly, I throw open my door. "Stay here." I command Athena, before quietly walking down the hall. I get on my knees at the top of the stairs and crawl to look in between the banisters. Even though I told her to stay, Athena plops down next to me.

    On the TV, my old track videos have just ended and the news report Mom taped comes on. I instantly feel my heart sink as the reporter holds a mic to his lips.

    "And here we have the fastest runner in Greensville Middle School and top tree across Georgia district, Miss Cameron Pitch." He flashes a smile as the camera turns to me; a younger me. Only a couple months before the cancer that ripped away my running talents, I was the Greensville prodigy for track. In the video, my hair is long, almost to my waist, but pulled back in a tight ponytail. I'm shorter, with more weight on me from the muscles of running  every single day of my life. I also doubled over and breathing heavily from the run I just took.

    "Miss Pitch, how did that run just feel? I mean you were flying down that line!" Video me stands back up straight and smiles at the cameras.

    "Absolutely exhilarating. I've never felt better." I answer, the sparkle in my eye showing how excited I am. The reporter flashes a smile.

    "How does it feel to know that you have a full ride scholarship to college at only twelve years old? I would be ecstatic about that amazing chance!"

    Video me flashes a smile at the camera. "I'm just happy that I get to run. The college is just a bonus."

    The TV flashes off and the remote thrown angrily on the table by my father. He starts yelling at my mom, but all of their words run together in my brain. I feel Athena looking at me, and faintly hear her mutter an "Oh."

    Silently, I crawl back into the hallway then stand and walk into my room. There are no tears now. Not this time. Ever since I was on Hospice, I let everything go. Including my biggest obsession; which was running.

     I knew I would die, so why hand on to something so small. The only happy thing I had left laying on that bed, was that I would see Angel again. Not even did my mother bring me happiness then. That last happiness, that last thing I ever held on to, died when AI found out I would live and that Hospice was not a necessity anymore.

    I fall onto my bed, flicking off the light on the way. Athena stands awkwardly in my room, but all I say is, "Either sleep on the other side of the bed, my floor, or show yourself out, I don't care."

    And in that moment, I really didn't care. About anything. All I would do was grip my fallen angel necklace as my already broken heart crumbled again.