Brent spoke up first, curiosity gnawing at him, "Why didn't you tell me?"
She sighed, sitting up properly, "You weren't special, believe me. I didn't tell anyone. I didn't quite believe it to begin with and telling someone would make it so much more real."
"Yet here you are. Why didn't the doctors get it before? How dare they pass of your symptoms as the signs of a student struggling?" He muttered bitterly as he bunched up the sheets in his hands.
Her eyes welled up with tears at his state and she tried to blink them away. She was devastated with thought of her being the cause of his anguish and anger. Florentine held his fisted hands in her, "You can't blame them when I thought nothing of those symptoms. Before anyone else, I would have known that something was wrong. It was my body too yet I wasn't aware. It puts me in a position where I can't hold a grudge at anyone else but me. When it finally started with the abrupt weight loss and dizzy spells, I tried to reach out,yes,but I was constantly assured that it was a chaotic point in my life with the university stress. People around me spoke of experiences that made me think I wasn't the only one and so I let it continue. I think after a point, I stopped caring perhaps. I lived my life in full gear and all those ignored symptoms caught up to me", she paused.
"I know it sucks. It really does. Sometimes, I find myself searching up on my cancer and all I think is Why me? It is prevalent in older people so why me? But Brent, it is okay. I know I found help late but it doesn't matter. Shit hits the fan and stuff happens. That's life but you know me. I won't let this drag me down", She whispered, afraid that anything a pitch higher would break her apart.
Brent tried to blink away his tears but silent tears made their way down his face.
She tried to chuckle lightly, her heart breaking at the sight, "I am fine. I mean it. I am happy."
"So", He sniffed as she wiped away his tears," This room looks lived in."
"Well, I have been here five times for extended periods", She smiled as she looked around the hospital room.
"I really thought you'd have a lot more stuff around here. Much more than this."
"It will feel too much like home and I just can't afford that happening"
"And?"
"I want to have a home to look forward to go back to", she sighed.
"Flo, when does treatment start?" He asked, dreading as the time for visiting to end drew closer.
"I am scheduled for a chemo dosage later today", She answered, stringing her fingers through her hair,"I, I, ugh, the results showed that I had Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma in three places- my left lung, liver and my right kidney."
He drew in a breath and exhaled deeply, "I was expecting this day to be happy. I thought it would be one we would look back with fireworks exploding around us as we hug against a scenic backdrop."
"Kind of wistful, don't you think? Reminds me of a terrible cheesy novel", she laughs.
For a moment, she felt like they were both teenagers on their first date instead of a boy and a girl on a small hospital room. But regardless of their setting and situation, she felt just as happy.
Had the nurse not come, it would have been perfect too but the reality sunk in as the nurse asked for him to leave.
"See you tomorrow then" He smiled, the unsaid promise hanging in the air.
"No, you'll not", She grimaced, "I can't have you see me like this."
"But I am ready to. I want to face this battle with you head front"
"Brent, I like you. I really do and this is precisely why I need you to stop coming as often. I won't have you put your life on hold for me."
"You are worth that and so much more. I want to do that for you."
"There you go again with your contemporary-novel lines. A wrong number, long conversations, dramatic reveals and a cancer- this is shaping up to be quite a story", she laughed but paused as he didn't.
"Brent, stop trying to do this for me. I'll text you all the time but you'll not stop for me. Coming here for prolonged periods of time isn't healthy for your job or your university course. You have to continue, alright. I'll call you; it will be just as before."
"It won't be. After this day, it can't go back to before. I want to be there for you but I'll not if that's you want", He sighed, "But every weekend, I'll be here. Constantly. Like a bee."
"You prefer the company of a sick girl over a sick party at the club with your friends?"
"Actually, I do."
"It's a deal", she grinned, "Remember to bring your happy with you. This place can get depressing."
A/N : *gasp* y'all thought I'd never? Ha. I updated after a really long time and my writing might be crappy or more possibly,cringy, but it's alright because it's all mine c:
For the constant support I have received even when on hiatus and the positivity all around has made me really happy so thanks to you.
the call is no longer on hold