Hazel never thought HE would die first. Him, the healthier one, the one who had a lesser chance of dying before the girl with lung cancer would. It's two months after his funeral and Hazel is still not over Gus's death. She barely made it through the service, sobbing into Isaac's shoulder. The meet with Mr. Peter Van Houten at the end of the service was an unpleasant one. Seeing him reminded Hazel of Amsterdam; the last time she truly had a good time, the last time she saw Gus as Gus and not Augustus Waters, the boy who used big words incorrectly and literally.
It's February, the anniversary of when she first started going to the Cancer Support Group in the Literal Heart of Jesus. Nowadays, the faintest memories trigger her. She's been in bed for two days, still not ready to face the world. Mrs. Lancaster decided it would be a good idea if she took the next semester off of classes just in case Hazel "relapses". While Hazel knows the real reason she's not attending any classes this semester at the community college, she's not about to deny herself days of rereading An Imperial Affliction and hanging out with Isaac. Isaac. These days, he's her rock and closest companion, and the only reason she bothers to get out of bed before 12 pm.
Her phone buzzes and her heart skips. Isaac? She takes unhooks herself from Phillip, her night oxygen machine, and laces her oxygen nubbins back in place. She grabs her phone off of her nightstand and smiles. It was Isaac.