Author's note: So I read the fault in our stars a few weeks ago and I can't get it out of my mind and it gave me an idea for a short multi-chapter fic. So I'll just leave this first chapter here and see how things go and then I'll decide if I should continue. Also, this was done really quickly since I'm going on vacation tomorrow so I apologize for any grammar mistakes and things like that.

Disclaimer: Characters do not belong to me.


It's moments like these that I hate the most. I was in yet another hospital bed with severe chest pains. Not even the drugs could fully lull me into a deep slumber, nothing could. I am cursed to stay here, lying as still as possible so as to not elicit another wave of pain and wait until the doctors came in to tell me what I already knew, what I had always known.

"It's not working." Those were the most dreadful words my family had to hear and yet they still kept coming. Although my father is quite wealthy even I am sure that his immense wealth had been dried out from so many failed treatment attempts. Every time Dr. Tsunade said the words my mother broke out into a sob, every single time.

No exception.

I try to not let it get to me, I really do. But what's a seventeen year-old girl's supposed to do when you see your mother break down in front of you? Nothing, that's what you do. You hold in the tears and you set your jaw determinedly and tell her that you will be fine and that things are bound to get better even if you are lying through your teeth. It's the only way to spare even an inch of their feelings.

It took me awhile to realize my eyes were still closed, probably because I certainly did not want to open them and see how blood-shot my mother's eyes were or see my father's arm wrap around her shoulders to try and give her some comfort when I could see that in his eyes he was breaking too. There was no comfort to give.

I was dying.

There was no beating around the bush, there were no ifs or maybes, not this time. I feel it, like my body is giving me some time to accommodate to what's going to happen, which is inevitable death.

Deciding I should at least speak to my parents I cracked one of my eyes opened. My eyes had always been a particularly rare colour. They were ghostly pale, kind of like my sickly skin. Finally gathering enough energy to look around the room I spot my parents beside my bed, my mother holds a tissue in her hand and her eyes are puffy, no surprise.

What does surprise me is my father's tears, they were clear and ultimately endless. "I'm dying huh?" I speak out loud and close my eyes before they noticed I saw them to gain their attention and hopefully to give them time to clean themselves up. I know they hate it when I see them so distressed, well at least my father hates it. My mom can't seem to stop herself but I don't hold it against her, I can tell that this process is worse for her than it is for me.

I can hear a broken, muffled sob coming from my mother, no doubt my words had set her off. I sigh aloud and try to sit up on the bed. Try being the key word here since I barely had enough energy to lift an arm. My dad quickly came to my side and lifted me up.

In that little instant where his strong arms lifted me with such ease I remembered a time when I was young, no older than four. We were in our backyard and I would pretend to be an airplane and my father would oblige and lift me higher than his head and spin me around. I shut my eyes and breathed in deeply, I couldn't afford to have such nostalgic thoughts at a time like this, the last thing my parents needed from me were tears.

Opening them again I could tell my dad had already wiped the tears in his eyes and had taken a seat on my bed, my mom was still an emotional wreck sobbing her way into misery on the chair at my other side. I tried to do my best and smile at them but the pain was so great I could tell it had come out like a grimace. Thankfully I didn't need to speak since my doctor was walking through the door.

"Hiashi, Hanako, Hinata…" She greeted all of us with a serious tone but instead of paying attention to her I thought about how all our names began with the letter H, it was interesting. "I'm afraid I don't have good news." She stated like it was a big surprise.

I had to hold back my snort because we all knew it was coming, this was not a surprise. "Your cancer has spread, the medicine isn't working anymore…" She broke off looking anywhere but at me, she felt sorry for me. She probably felt like she had failed me but she hadn't because she had tried her best and I appreciated her for never bullshitting my condition. She told me exactly what my chances for survival always were.

They were never good.

"How much?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper. All my life I've been a fairly soft spoken person and when I got the cancer I spoke up even less but that says little about my character. I like to think I'm strong, I've never cried when I've gotten bad news at least not in front of my parents.

Her warm golden eyes look at me with unshed tears and I wonder, ever so briefly what it must be like to have most of your patients die one by one. "We're going to try this new experimental drug…" She said, eyes completely locked with mine, as if my parents weren't there.

"If it works then you'll stay alive and if it doesn't you will most likely die in five months." At the end of her sentence my mother yet again began crying and my father wiped at his eyes desperately, I however remained strong.

"And how will you know if it's working?" I ask, referring to the drug.

"You won't die." She said it so plainly and straight forward I wanted to laugh, so I did. My parents and Tsunade looked at me strangely and I shrugged good naturedly.

"My apologies, it just sounded weird." I tell them trying to hold back the laughter which seemed to cause more pain to well up in my chest. I cringed and exhaled slowly, willing the pain away.

My father already had his hand on top of mine, breathing slowly with me which I would never admit to be eternally grateful for. "We will start the drug tomorrow, until then I suggest you sleep because sleep…"

I didn't even let her finish. "Fights cancer, yeah yeah."

She left without another word and once again we were engulfed by this heart-wrenching silence. I turned to address both my parents seriously. "It's going to be okay if I die, you still have Hanabi and you have to take care of her." I tell them and even though my voice sounds strong inside I'm screaming and cursing and crying like the little girl I never got to be.

I see my father nod his head in understanding and kiss my forehead tenderly, a show of affection he rarely gives. I figure that knowing you won't have a daughter to kiss or hug makes a parent become tender but I wouldn't know, I'm never going to have a daughter.

"You should probably go." I croak out, hoping they leave before I unravel into the mess that I truly am.

"Okay, we'll come by tomorrow before they try out the new procedure." My father answers me.

As they are exiting the room I finally see my mother a little calm and she turns to look at me, something I wish she didn't do because it makes it so much harder to remain strong for her when you see her like this. "It'll work this time, you'll see." She says just loud enough for me to hear and I only manage a weak nod before they exit the room and close the door behind them.

As soon as the door shuts I break, I break like every other time I've been told that the treatment isn't working except this time it's worse. I know the drug won't work and I know I won't live to see another summer here, and that frightens me. No, no it doesn't, it down right terrifies me.

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I seemed to have fallen asleep sometime after my parents left because I open my eyes to see absolutely no one in the room. The emptiness feels good and bad at the same time, good because I'm sure I look like hell after crying for hours but bad because the loneliness gets to me.

Not even a few minutes go by before someone rudely opens the door without asking. Thoroughly annoyed and still sleepy I look up to yell at the person only for my words to die in my throat. Captivating cerulean eyes stare at me dazedly and spikey blonde hair frames a nice looking face. The boy seemed to be around my age but I could tell that he was healthy.

He was built like a Greek God. Well, at least I thought so, I wouldn't really know considering I barely get to interact with people nonetheless guys. "Umm, hi." I hear him speak and the deepness of his voice takes me by surprise. For such a bright looking boy his voice sounds like it belongs to someone else.

"H-hello." I stutter out nervously. He takes a cautious step into my room as if to not scare me and looks around wearily.

"I'm sorry to bother you but I'm a little lost." He admits and I see a tanned arm wrapping around his neck in what I would assume is an old habit. He might've been embarrassed but the smile he wore covered up for any blunders.

I couldn't help but laugh slightly. "I'm afraid I'm probably of no help." I tell him and it's true, I barely know what floor of the hospital I'm in, probably ICU but then again maybe not, I don't know and I certainly don't want to think anymore.

"Oh." He says then chuckles nervously and I wonder what makes him so nervous. Maybe it was being in a hospital since I sincerely doubt I'm the reason he would be in such a frenzy. I have blackish hair that barely goes past my shoulder blades and it's probably lost any shine it ever had thanks to all the treatments. I'm also wearing a hospital gown and there's like a billion machines hooked up to me, I was anything but extraordinary and definitely nothing akin to beautiful. And yet, this handsome guy shifted uncomfortably as he looked into my eyes.

"I'm really sorry I bothered you." He said and it sounded genuine with a hint of sadness. I only shook my head and told him he really wasn't an inconvenience, I was silently praising him for being the thing to get my mind off my terminal status. I guess I must've been so lost in thought that the boy noticed since he took a few steps closer to me and placed a strong hand over mine. "Are you alright?"

"Um, yes." I answered uncomfortably, never having had any boy that close to me besides my older cousin Neji. "Just a bit distracted I guess."

He grinned at me child-like and I swear I felt my lungs collapse and my heart yell fanatically. This wasn't the smile of a boy who was sexy-which he still was- but it was his real smile, a smile that took up most of his face yet it seemed breathtaking. My smile in no way could ever compare to his. "I'm Naruto, by the way." He introduced himself and extended his hand.

I shook it cautiously while muttering my name that also seemed to sag in comparison with his. "So, do you come here often?" He blurts out and I can tell from the look on his face that he wants to swallow his whole foot.

I merely giggle at him and stare at him. "I'm here more often then I'd like to admit, yes." I tell him in my gentle voice while smiling at him. He doesn't know about my condition but I can't lie. And this is an opportunity to if only have a normal sympathy free conversation with a person and I was not about to ruin that by telling him why I was here in the first place.

He seems to be rattled slightly by my answer but then smiles, the good old sexy small smile of his and stands up from my bed. "I'd really like to talk more Hinata but I'm looking for a friend of mine and I should probably find him before he kills me for being so late."

I nod my head once and smile, feeling slightly disappointed that my conversation with him is so short. He seems to notice my dampened mood because he keeps talking. "Yeah it's just that Sasuke really is a bastard and he is very impatient."

Sasuke.

I know him, he's the only person I get along with at this hospital and outside of it. He knows what it's like to feel defeated, to feel like you are a corpse wired to walk as far as you can. "Sasuke Uchiha?" I ask timidly, cutting him off in the middle of his rant.

"Yeah!" He yells excitedly though I can tell from a glint in his eyes that he seems really sad whenever Sasuke is mentioned. I thought maybe it was best for him to go see Sasuke, I know the black haired boy doesn't get to many visitors since people don't like his forlorn personality, I however do not mind it.

"Umm, if you make your way to the 6th floor Uchiha's room should be…" I pause for a second to think of the room number, mine is always 615 and he is always two rooms beside mine. "617."

Naruto's face lightens when I tell him the information. "Great, that's only a couple rooms away." And then he starts walking towards the door, right before he walks out he stares back at me with the natural grin, too big for his face. "It was really great meeting you and I'm sure I'll see you again Hinata."

He leaves and I feel my heart beat speed up slightly. I shouldn't feel excited that he said he was going to see me again, I can't feel excited.

You're dying. You're dying. You're dying.

I keep reminding myself but none of that matters because for the first time in years I slept with a real smile on my face.

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The next morning came quicker than I would have liked. I groaned slightly from the pain I could feel along my hip and in my chest. It really sucked to have cancer everywhere. I opened my eyes to see long blonde hair. "Dr. Tsunade." I greet tersely, I know why she's here.

She nods at me, sympathy still in her eyes, so I look away and bite my tongue to keep whatever rude words I was going to yell at her deep in my throat. "It's time?"

"Yes. I'm just waiting for your wheelchair." She informs me as my parents, my younger sister and a wheelchair enter the room.

"I can walk, you know." I tell her, and I make sure my parents and sister hear so they can at least have the peace of mind that I am still trying to live, though I'm not really sure if I am or not. To be honest I probably couldn't walk, it took me half of my energy just to breathe I couldn't imagine how walking or standing or doing anything would go.

Tsunade only laughed at me and shook her head. "Doctor's order are a wheelchair." She says referring to herself and I am glad she is here and knows what to say to keep my parents optimistic.

I wheel myself out again taking more energy than possible and into a room that is sterile and clean and too much like a morgue for my liking. "Preview to an oncoming attraction?" I asked jokingly though neither the nurses nor my doctor thought it was funny.

All they did in this very freaky room was hook me up to an IV which would be the new drug and wheel me out with it at my side. "Side effects include vomiting, bruising, dizziness, depression…" I tuned out as Tsunde informed my parents. She always said these were side effects of the drugs or of the cancer itself but they really weren't.

They were just side effects of dying.

"Where do you want to go?" My mother asked me cautiously.

"The gathering area." I tell her and she starts wheeling me in that direction. The gathering area is just a big open room with TVs and toys for the younger kids, I don't particularly like it but I prefer it to being surrounded by the same four walls with my worried parents and clueless sister at my side.

As soon as we get their Hanabi goes to the play area with other kids, some of them sick and some of them not. I feel-even if just for a second- lucky that Hanabi is one of the kids who is not, because I would rather go through this myself than it be her.

"Hyuga." Sasuke greets me and mother places the wheelchair beside him. My parents walk towards Sasuke's parents no doubt to tell them the 'good' news.

"Uchiha." I nod at him and grin, I love pissing him off and he hates it when people smile. Though this time he only smiles softly which takes me by surprise and the thing that comes out of my mouth was not thought out at all. "Are you dying?" I ask frantically.

He looks up at me, those black holes of nothing can probably see more of me and my fears and insecurities than either of my parents. We understand each other, simple as that. If I had to be honest with myself he was probably the only friend I had left.

"Aren't we all dying?" He smirks, that goddamn condescending smirk but it alleviates my worries a little.

"Some faster than others, clearly." I gesture around us and he laughs slightly.

Sasuke has a tumor, a tumor in his brain that the doctors can't seem to shrink. I didn't hear this from Sasuke, my parents told me. And from that moment I knew he was like me, he didn't like to be known as the cancer patient who is strong willed and optimistic because he wasn't. He was fucking miserable just like I was. He didn't think any of this was fair and he was right.

"I hear you met Naruto." He tells me out of nowhere and I whip my head back to look at him so fast I almost snap it. I hear his laughing before I see his ever present smirk.

"Yeah, walked into the wrong room I guess." I shrug, trying to downplay my feelings but I knew that Sasuke would be able to decipher how much I liked his friend.

"Right, he liked you." He informs me and I feel my heart swell with happiness because if anything I know Sasuke is not a liar. He is blunt and aggressive and sometimes the biggest asshole ever but he was always honest.

"How do you know?"

"Idiot told me so." He chuckles lightly but they turn into coughs of blood.

He was dying too.

"Sasuke…" I start, my voice softer than usual, I want to help him. I want to be his rock like he sometimes is for me but I know he won't let me.

"It's just a side effect." He assures me but I'm not sure I believe him.

The rest of the time we sit in relative silence, neither of us are particularly chatty and today didn't seem like a good day to talk anyways. It wasn't that I could read minds or anything but I could tell Sasuke was as screwed as I am. We are both sitting there feeling shitty while waiting for imminent and inescapable death.

"It's not fair." I mutter softly, my voice cracking slightly to show a glimpse of my inner turmoil.

"No, it's not." He agrees and neither of us wants to look at each other because I know if I cry he will too and if he cries I will join, because at the end of the day we are still sick and dying and nothing would ever fix that.