The call had happened. The news had arrived. Yvette slowly hung up the phone after she got the message. The world around her slowed down and gravity seemed to get heavier. She slid down the wall into a seated position and curled up into a ball. The call was from her doctor. The news was she was going to die in July from an acute blood poisoning that no hospital could cure.
She had tried every possible way she could. Doctors tried every cure and experiment known to science. Reiki masters tried every healing method they knew. Hypnosis. Everything. Nobody could do anything. She was helpless. She was only nineteen and had recently graduated high school. She was going to go to Yale. Now, in one month, she was going to the grave.
None of her family knew what was happening to her; she didn’t want them to until she knew that there was nothing she could do. Now, the only thing she could do was cry. “I don’t want to die.”
Mom had gone shopping, but she’d be back in a couple of hours. Dad was at work and would be home a few hours after Mom. All Yvette wanted to do was wrap her arms around them and cry and tell them everything. The comfort they could give her was better than the cold comfort of the doctors telling her that her death would be painless and would probably happen in her sleep.
Yvette trembled at the thought of her parent’s reactions when she tells them. She knew they would try to find her a cure, but she already knew there wasn’t one. She’d tell them of course, but there’s no way they’d listen; she’s only a child fresh to the adult world how could she know? The only reason they didn’t know was because she lied to them about where she was going and asked the doctor, who was a friend of hers not to tell anyone.
There was a sound at the door and Mother came through. “Hello, Yvette. Oh, what’s wrong, dear?”
Yvette looked at her mother with teary eyes. “Mom, I need to tell you something. It’s really, really important. You’re going to want to sit down though.”
Mother put down the bags in her hands. “OK. Lets go to the kitchen.”
When Mom sat down Yvette let out a short sob. “Mom, y-you know all those times I said I went to Kelly’s house? Not all of those visits were true. I was going to the doctors and stuff. I-I am dying.”
Mother’s jaw dropped and then quickly closed up. “No, no you’re not. You can’t be, you’re too young. You can’t die. This has to be a lie.”
Yvette hugged herself. “It’s true. I didn’t want to tell you two because I didn’t know if I could cure it or not, but I have one month and nobody can do anything. I don’t want to die!”
Yvette embraced her mother in tears. Mom returned the embrace. “You’re going to be fine. Everything’s going to be fine.”
Yvette sobbed. “No!”
They held each other for the next few minutes. Mom denying and comforting. Yvette crying. The only words going through Yvette’s mind were “This is not fair”.
After a while Mom suggested that they bring in the groceries before the food goes bad from the heat, just to take their mind off of death for a while. After unpacking and putting away the groceries, Mom called Dad and told him about what happened, shortly after he came home. Yvette was terrified. She didn’t want to explain this to anyone, especially her parents. It wasn’t fair for her to keep this a secret anymore though. The same reaction came from Dad, but angrier and far more terrifying.
Dad called the hospital and heard the news from them. He slammed the phone after the hospital hung up on him, and defeated he slid down the wall into a seated position. Yvette and Mom joined him.
“What are we going to do?” He breathed. “I can’t lose you, my only child, my daughter.”
He broke down in tears and nobody said anything for quite some time. Yvette, Mom, and Dad all held each other crying.
Finally, Yvette spoke up. “There’s nothing that can be done. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you anything until now. I love you. Mom. Dad. I love you.”
Her voice broke up and for a while she couldn’t speak. “I-I’m going to die. I don’t want to. I want to live. But I’m going to die.”
