The Transplant ✔️

7. The Run-In

Jolie's POV:

"Come on, do you call that running?"

Candy was unstoppable, with every fiber of her former cheerleader body. She had stamina and height like a lumberjack as she ran down the walkway at the park.

I was lagging behind her, barely able to catch my breath, my hands on my hips. I attempted to blow my brown hair out of my face, but the stick mess was there to stay.

"If I'm going to die, I won't let this be the reason." I joked.

"Hey, don't say something like that." She panted, continuing to rapidly run ahead of me.

The only reason I sped up was because I was eyeing a wooden bench in the distance, and I would love to be able to sit down. With aching joints like mine, you don't pass up on an opportunity to sit down and be lazy.

I started jogging again, my feet hitting the gravel and my heels feeling every thump on the earth. I quickened my pace and started to run, sweat tickling down my legs and air burning inside my throat.

I was soon catching up with Candy, her green eyes fixed with astonishment.

"Wow, you've caught up. What's the hurry?" She asked.

"The bench. I want to sit down." I shrugged.

I finally hit the edge of the bench, throwing myself on the seat, glad no one hadn't decided to sit there.

On the side of me, Candy took a seat also. She took off her sunglasses before wiping the sweaty face.

"That was an awesome run!" She admitted.

"Yeah, I had fun walking." I giggled.

"At least you came; it's been a while since we've been running together."

"I've never been running here. I can't remember the last time I came here. Maybe when I was five." I told her.

"Oh." She laughed.

I stared into the open field, watching the passerbys exercise. There was one woman rolling a stroller, a usual mental woman that walks by the house with only a stuffed doll in the stroller. I looked away, careful not to stare at the odd woman for fear of her noticing me.

The next person was a runner, huffing as he went, and I'm not so sure what would finish first: his run, or the bottle of beer in his hand.

The new, upcoming walkers were a couple, about my age. They held hands as they walked, a nice morning getaway in silence from anything but the morning doves.

He stared at his girl in pure awe, rubbing the front side of his thumb on her hand. Either they were in the honeymoon stage, or they were deeply in love. I felt a pang of jealousy, wishing I could have that right now.  But I wasn't going to burden someone with my problems; no one should be stuck with a sickly girl like me.

"You okay? You seem zoned out." Candy clicked her fingers in front of me, trying to dissolve my attention from the park and onto her rounded face.

I cleared my throat, deciding not to dwell on the walkers for any longer.

"I'm fine, why wouldn't I be?" I said confidently.

"Okay, well we should be leaving. I need to take a shower before I start getting itchy." Candy told me.

"Alright, you're going home?"

"Of course not. I'm using your shower so we can hang out afterward." I should have guessed that one.

I pulled myself away from the bench, still trying to catch my breath.

"I should have guessed." I laughed at Candy.

As soon as I turned around to start walking back to Candy's jeep, I ran into the blonde bimbo from the last day of school. All six feet of her.

I had briefly remembered calling her a slut, and the equal exchange of a four letter word from her mouth.

"If it isn't the bitch." She bit, a glacier look from her botoxed face.

"If it isn't the hoe." Candy chimed in, not as silent as she had been in our last run-in with the blonde.

"Stuff it, little girl. Was I talking to you?" Oh no, Candy does not take well to orders.

"You are now, you piece of shit. Why don't you keep walking because your fat ass needs it." Candy walked between the two of us, not afraid of the blondes wrath. Soon, Candy's scare tactics had worked, the blonde backing up a few inches.

My mouth unlocked like a key, watching as Candy stared at the devil. I'm surprised Candy didn't turn into stone by now.

"Come on, let's get out of here. I smell too much feminine products." She laughed.

"For you, that's saying a lot."

**

We were home in a minute, my mother's car was in the driveway forcing us to park on the right side of the garage.

"My mom should be at work right now." I said aloud, but mostly speaking to myself.

I was quick to get out of the vehicle, walking through an unlocked front door and into the foyer if my home.

"Mom?" I called out.

"Honey, so glad you're home." Popping up on front of me like a wind-up box was my mother, in her usual striped, pencil skirt and flowy blouse.

"What's up?" I calmly interrogated.

"We've received a copy of the recent test results of your donor. The test results were miraculous. Looks like you might actually get this kidney." Her hands caressed my cheeks before throwing me into a huge hug.

"That's amazing. Does Emeric know?" I asked, my stomach tightening from the all-too eager hug I couldn't get out of.

"He's been told. He's on the back porch."

I ushered Candy into the home before leaving to find Emeric. Candy had no problem making herself comfortable in the living room while I left.

"I see you're in my spot." Emeric was in my rocking chair, a bottle of beer on the floor beside him.

"Yeah, you want to sit?" He asked.

"No, it's okay. I just came out to ask if you've heard the news?"

The chair stopped rocking, Emeric's face turning to mine.

"Yeah, and I'm happy for you, really, but..."

"But what?" I asked.

"But you know as well as I do that this is risky. We're putting all of our hope into this one procedure, and I'm worried about the consequences on our own behalf. Handling another rejection is going to be hard." I knew where he was getting at, and he didn't have to say a word. He was afraid of his former drug addiction.

I took a seat on the rocker, forcing him to scoot over for me.

"Emeric, you will never go back to the way you were, I won't let you. You can't fight this more than you think. It's what's in here that matters." I pointed to his heart.

"I don't want to hurt you and Mom like that again. You guys need me to be there for you both." He assured himself.

"That's right. And I need you there when I wake up from surgery, whatever the outcome may be." I rested my head on Emeric's shoulder, praying that everything would work out.