Lost in their Past

Chapter 52:- The Diagnosis

It was true that she and Delia were no longer as close as they used to be, she hated the brunette with every breath she drew but their mutual trust from the field was still intact. It could withstand a nuclear catastrophe and still stand tall.

If Grace couldn't trust Delia, she couldn't trust anyone, not even herself.

"I trust you," she answered, "you're a bitch but you were... are my friend, my partner."

Delia tilted her head, Grace's words were overwhelming but that wasn't the reason she'd revealed something so important.

"Fine, the Apocalypse killed James and I know you loved him too much to turn into a bloody snitch."

The brunette smiled as she looked at her estranged friend. Back in the days, there wasn't a day that passed when the two didn't commune. Delia was like an older sister yet it was Grace who always saved the day and her butt.

"Remember Basil?" Delia took a sip.

"I thought we aren't allowed to communicate about past achievements."

She finished her drink and took out another. "Fuck the rules." She laughed as Grace glared towards her. "I'm here for another hour so... Basil. The city of the wall."

"Climbing the ruins was the best part of my life."

"And shooting Apocalypses!"

"Hmm, makes you wonder how they are still alive?"

"And why are they so sexy... I mean... I loved James with all my heart but damn, the Apocalypses was something else."

For the first time in many years, a laugh escaped their lips. Beer flew through Delia's nose and laughter broke out of her mouth. Grace bend a little backward, and Delia down the stool.

As their laughter died down, both of them stared at each other, thinking the same thing. "We're horrible people," they concluded.

"You more than me," Grace concluded, "didn't the Apocalypse kill your parents and grandparents?"

"Both of them," she realized, "and yet here I am, thinking about boning one."

Beer spewed out of Grace's mouth, "Remember when I protected you and used my body as a shield?" Her eyes widened with surprise, "what was I thinking!"

"Exactly!" Delia hit her hand with girth, "I mean if you realized back then that I would ditch you, you would've left me for dead!"

"Exactly!" She finished her beer, "I would've shot you myself!"

The brunette stirred a little, "You would've?" She raised her eyebrows.

A smile was still plastered on Grace's face, a part of her wanted to say yes just to see the hurt on her nemesis's face but the good that was still left in her forbade her from doing so. The apology that she'd given her had turned the tables. "No, I love you too much to do it."

Delia flashed her puppy dog eyes as she affectionately put her hand on her estranged friend's hand. "Aw, has motherhood changed you?"

"Kinda yeah," she answered, "I mean before I had Serena, whenever I got shot, I didn't think of anyone but after I could only see her face."

Delia awed in response.

"Also, I now have to think one and a half times before shooting someone in the face, I think maybe they have a family but then I realize they brought it on themselves."

She took back her aw.

"It must've been tough... raising her all by herself."

Grace grunted her teeth bitterly, "It was at start... but Serena, she's something else, Delia. She's nothing like me, so pure and..."

Delia smiled, thinking of the times Ash had praised the blonde. "I know... Ash couldn't stop gushing over her."

Grace averted her eyes, "Promise me that he'll never hurt her."

Delia frowned, "What are you talking about?"

"Serena loves Ash," Grace sighed, "she always has even though she doesn't know it yet, just... promise me you'll see to it that he will treat her the same way James treated you."

"Why... are you telling me this?" Her heart did a few somersaults, "I'm sure if he ever hurts her you'll be there to snatch his eyes out."

Grace wasn't amused, not even by a smidge. "You're my best friend, Diane, you always are and always will by no matter the crap you manage to pull."

"Yeah but—"

"What is the diagnosis?"

The smile on Delia's face disappeared. She parted her eyes away from her friends and looked down at her feet. "The treatment that we use to heal wounds, the regenerative cells from Pokémon is being rejected by your body."

Grace looked at her shoulder, the wound was clean. "But the cut is clean."

She nodded, "Over the years your body has been developing antibodies against our treatment and now that you were injected against a few days ago, it attacked them and hence the weakness."

Grace's heartbeat was elevating. "But I was genetically engineered... oh my God..."

Delia felt her throat clog up, "We can try stem cell treatments but..."

Grace stayed silent for the time. She wasn't conceived naturally, her mother and parents were bioengineers, they extracted protein and cells from Pokemon to accelerate the healing process, the treatment they were currently using.

Her parents had used combined their genes with that of their research and then Grace was born. But she wasn't what they'd expected and they'd always hated her for it. Her home was her prison and her parents the jailers.

"My parents are dead," she broke into a laugh, "in the end it was them that would kill me."

Her laughs brought nothing but pain to Delia's ears. She was one of the first to see Grace's medical reports. Even though Ailsa had called her to the call almost immediately, she'd chosen not to go. She wasn't there for Grace back then but she was going to be now.

"I have a degree in bioengineering, Grace, I'll figure it out," she took her hand in her's, "I promise."

Grace returned her touch, "I know you will," she smiled, "is it genetic?"

"What do you mean?"

"Did I pass it to Serena?"

Delia's silence was answer enough.

Grace sighed, she felt parted her eyes from Delia as they started to water up. "It's bad enough that my body is starting to attack itself and now my daughter has it too... it's just..." She broke into tears.

Delia had never seen Grace cry, no even when she was shot or left alone by her. As tears rolled down her cheeks, Delia's throat started to get clogged up. She stood up from the stood and laid down next to her friend.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as Delia wrapped her arms around her friend's torso.

"Don't tell her," Grace sobbed, "not Joanne, not Alain and... especially not Charlus."

"I won't," she promised.

"How long do I have?"

Again, Delia's silence was answer enough.