𝐇𝐀𝐙𝐄𝐋 ➤ [ 𝑑𝑎𝑣𝑖𝑑 𝑑𝑜𝑏𝑟𝑖𝑘 ]

FOURTEEN

_______________

"YOU'RE A FUCKING IDIOT." ILYA LAUGHED LOUDLY at David's words, Lea and I quickly joining in , our eyes focused on Ilya as he tries to balance a spoon on his nose.

But yet again, he fails.

It's been an entire week since David had arrived here in Chicago. He's been by my side the entire time, and he only went to Ilya's apartment when he needed to shower,
and also to bring me some of my favourite snacks.

I've grown quite attached to him, and I enjoyed his company. More than I'll admit. He actually made me happy, extremely happy, and for once, I didn't feel so miserable.

"I did it !" Ilya suddenly yelled, grabbing our attention as the spoon perfectly balanced on his nose, that is, until Lea knocked it off, resulting in a quite upset looking Ilya.

"You better run." Ilya warned, but the playfulness in his voice didn't go unnoticed.

Lea rolled her eyes at Ilya, until he stood up, and Lea immedaitely dashed towards the door, Ilya chasing after her.

"They're definitely gonna' get in trouble." David laughed as I nodded in agreement, my eyes going to meet his.

Giving him a soft smile, he returns the gesture, but soon, out attention is grabbed when the door to my hospital room opens, Doctor Meyers , together with my parents, entering the room.

The air instantly thickens.

"Sweetie, we need to talk." My mother's voice was stern, yet filled with an underlying sadness and my heart instantly dropped.

David cleared his throat, "I uh- I'll go wait in the lobby." But before he could ascend from his seat, I grabbed hold of his hand, "no," I shook my head, "please stay." David's eyes instantly softened as he nodded, taking his seat again, his fingers interwining with mine.

Doctor Meyers opened the file in her hands, clearing her throat as her sympathetic eyes met mine.

"The results of the blood tests you did yesterday came back." She slowly spoke, "there is no easy wat to tell you this, Sydney, but your Leukaemia escalated. You have what we call, AML, Acute Myloid Leukaemia."

Instant tears welled up in my eyes at her words, my eyes watched as my mother clings to my father in a sense of comfort , both of their faces lined with sadness, and I couldn't even dare to look over at David, thus,I kept my eyes trained on Doctor Meyers.

"It is treatable, with Chemo therapy, and it's often curable with Chemo, but there's only a small chance. The other option is a stem cell transplant, but we have yet to find a suitable donor for you."

I couldn't grasp any words. My throat tightened up, it almost felt like I couldn't breath.

I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath, before clearing my throat,

"What are the chances that- that I'll survice." The air thickened even more,

"There is a 20% chance you'll survive this, Sydney."

And then, my eyes snapped over to David, his face seemed blotchy, his eyes watery, and my heart broke.

I gave his hand a small squeeze , before meeting Doctor Meyers' gaze again.

"How long ? How long do I have left to live?"

Doctor Meyers seemed somewhat uncomfortable with all these questions, but I didn't care, I needed answers.

"With a stem cell transplant, there's a good chance that you'll survive this,
but there are very few donors, and so far, we haven't had a suitable one for you." She took a deep breath, before continuing, "with chemo, you'll have eight months to a year left."

"And without Chemo?"

"Four months, but I strongly advise you to go through with your Chemo therapy."

My mind raced, my heart pounding, but I knew I had already came to a conclusion.

"I'm not doing Chemo therapy again."

"Sydney, sweetie, don't do this." My mother begged, "please honey."

"Why? I'll die either way, I'm not going through with it."

"Syd, are you sure about this?" David spoke for the first time, his eyes gentle yet worried, and I nodded.

"I've never been so sure about anything."

"Sydney, this is a very serious decision." Dr. Meyers spoke,

"I know, Doctor. I'd rather live my life to thr fullest for a few months, than to be stuck in a hospital for most of the time with Chemo therapy. This is what I want."

"If this is what you want, we'll support it." My father spoke gently,

I could see my mother didn't want this, but I know that she'd support me,
she just needs time to take it all in.

My eyes then traveled to David's , and before I could speak to him, my parents and Doctor Meyers excused themselves, my mother probably needing some calming down.

"Syd, you're sure about this?"

"I'm positively sure, David."

He gave me a small smile, gently placing his lips on top of my hand as he gave it a small kiss.

"You're the bravest person I know." He spoke, and an instant blush coated my cheeks.

I leaned forward, giving him a tight hug,

"Now, go get Lea and Ilya, we have a bucket list to make."