Till Death Do Us Part

Chapter 59 - They Knew Every Second Was Precious

They arrived at Ludwina's regular coffee shop, and only then did Andrea put Ludwina on a chair. He ordered his wife's favorite coffee then sat beside Ludwina, holding her hand. He didn't want to let her go at all. 

Never again!

"How long are you going to be in New York?" He asked as they were enjoying coffee. "I'll have to buy a lot of clothes if we're going to be here for a long time."

"I don't know..." Ludwina replied. "I have to see my doctor for another consultation tomorrow."

"Okay, I'll come along," said Andrea quickly.

Ludwina nodded.

They did not discuss Ludwina's illness until the two of them arrived at the hotel. Andrea would feel better if he heard directly from her doctor. He did not want to stress his wife with his questions.

After making sure Ludwina rested, Andrea went to a nearby shop and bought clothes. He refused to be accompanied because he didn't want Ludwina to become tired. After returning to the hotel, he ordered food, and they had dinner together in the room.

That night, for the first time, Ludwina felt like she got her appetite back and could finish her meal. Andrea's presence really made her heart happy. She never thought, when she shared her suffering with her husband, the heavy burden in her chest felt so much lighter.

After clearing up their plates, Andrea invited Ludwina to bed. He was delighted because he had been longing to sleep beside his wife for a long time and hugged Ludwina as he always did.

After days of not sleeping properly, tonight, he managed to close his eyes and sleep soundly, likewise with Ludwina.

She grabbed Andrea's hand, which was hugging her from behind, as if she wanted to vent a year of longing during her lonely nights without Andrea by her side.

***

Andrea was trying to look strong in front of Ludwina. He did not mention his suffering all this time at all. During this year, Ludwina lied to him. Before Ludwina apologized, he had already forgiven his wife. Currently, his focus was on how to take care of the girl and ensure that her health improved.

Doctor Kim met them in his office and explained the results of the latest examination of Ludwina's cancer. Andrea paid attention to every word that came out of the doctor's mouth.

"When I compared the biopsy results from last year and the last time, her cancer has not spread significantly. This is already a miracle." Doctor Kim started their consultation by telling the good things first. "Ludwina's positive attitude has been essential in her body's defense against cancer. If you are discouraged and depressed, cancer cells will spread more quickly. So actually, we still have hope, if you want to do chemotherapy."

Andrea squeezed Ludwina's hand gently. He looked at his wife with a pleading look. "Let's do chemotherapy, Honey...please?"

One of the reasons Ludwina refused chemotherapy all this time was because she didn't want her family to know that she had cancer.

Chemotherapy was done by killing cancer cells using drugs inserted through an IV.

Unfortunately, this drug also affected the healthy body's cells. They would become weak, and the patient would experience apparent side effects. A few weeks after starting chemo, the patient experienced the loss of hair and eyebrows, nausea, vomiting, and their body grew frail.

Ludwina wouldn't be able to go through this all alone without making her family suspicious.

"But then I'll look so ugly ..." Ludwina whispered in a weak voice, almost crying. "I will lose my hair, and the chance of recovery is also small... It's not worth it."