A/N: Ok. No JB in this chapter, sorry! They are coming soon, though, I promise! i am gonna get chapter two up asap!! Read and review, because I want to knwo what you guys think!
I knew as soon as I had gotten home that day from school that something was wrong. There was just that atmosphere as soon as I entered the house, that feeling of foreboding and tension. Both my mom and my dad's cars were gone, and the house was completely and totally empty. A shiver immediately ran up my spine as I let my backpack drop to the floor. There was a note stickied to the front of our fridge, next to the pictures of me and all of my siblings. That was where the situation turned odd. Not even my eldest brother, Michael, who had just turned sixteen, was home, which was unusual for him. I dropped my keys onto the kitchen counter, ignoring the empty clanging noise that rang through the house. "Michael?" I called out, my throat starting to constrict. I could feel the tears coming on as I crumpled the sticky note in my hand. "Conner? Abbi?" I called out. I didn't need a note to tell me what was happening. I knew immediately that it was Kia, the youngest of us. She was only seven, and one of the sweetest things in the world. A good amount of those seven years had been spent in the hospital, because Kia had been diagnosed early on with leukemia.
I quickly wiped the tears from my eyes and sniffled a little bit. Taking in a few deep breaths I glanced down at the note. It was my mom's elegant hand writing, but today I could tell she had been shaking as she wrote it. "At the hospital. Meet us there. Love, Mom," it read. I leaned against the counter, my legs feeling like jell-o. Kia couldn't be in the hospital again, she just couldn't be. The last time had been torture, hour after hour, day after day, eventually week after week of waiting. I hated the waiting, and the fact that I had to watch her fight it on her own, suffer through the cancer on her own. Taking in a deep breath, I rushed up to my room with out a glance at my pack or at my keys. As soon as I entered the room I was on the ground and fishing under my bed for the small trunk that was hidden there. I reemerged only seconds later with said trunk in hand and flipped the lid open. It was my emergency kit, one that had everything I would need when Kia was back in the hospital, from the small hand held playstation advanced that we always played down to the two CDs that we always made sure to blare when we were locked in that horrible place together: the Jonas Brothers' self titled CD and their first album, It's About Time. Those two CDs were what we lived off of. Those and any youtube videos we could find our favorite singing trio had put out lately.
A small sigh escaped my lips as I wiped a stray tear from my eye. I knew she would be fine; she was fine last time, and she would be fine this time. We would hang out at the hospital like always, she would go through her chemo, then we would all be a happy family again. I gathered up my courage as well as the two CDs and a few magazines from the floor. She might have been seven years old, but she was smart, and she loved looking at the pictures in the magazines. Once those were all collected in my arms, I headed back down to the kitchen, grabbed my purse and wallet, and headed out immediately.
The drive to the Children's hospital wasn't that far, and I knew it like the back of my hand by now, from the last time Kia was sick. Before entering the hospital I checked myself in the mirror. My brown eyes weren't red and puffy as I had expected, and I didn't look worried, tired or stressed like I usually did when I came here. I ran my fingers through my straight brown locks before taking in another deep breath and stepping out of the car into the parking lot. Once the car was locked up, the butterflies in my stomach grew bigger with each step closer to the automatic hospital doors. I didn't want to be back in this place that was so immaculately clean, so unsuited for a seven year old like my little sister, and yet here I was, marching off to meet that fate.
The main lobby smelled odd, just like the rest of the building did. Unlike the rest of the building, though, it was one of the few rooms that was actually decorated. I ignored the couches, coffee tables with magazines on them and gift shop, instead heading straight over to the counter where a nurse was typing away on her computer. Chewing my lower lip, I waited for her to notice me, but it seemed like that wasn't going to happen. Instead of waiting any longer, I nervously curled a strand of my hair around my finger. "'Scuse me," I piped up, my voice breaking. I was on the verge of tears once more, just being back here made me want to hide in a dark corner and cry, mostly because it brought back some of the most agonizing memories of my life. The woman looked up at me, a bored expression on her face. "I'm looking for the room number of Kia McGoven…" I trailed off, forgetting that she probably wouldn't be very willing to disclose that information. When she looked at me with a guarded expression, I felt a faint blush creep over my cheeks. "Uh, I'm Celine, her sister. I… my parents are probably there, if you just page them --" I was cut off by the sound of a familiar voice: my father's.
"Hey, Lina," He greeted, using my nickname, his husky voice calming me. The nurse gave me a cautious smile as I ran into my father's open arms. He looked tired and stressed, just like I felt. "She's with me," He told the nurse. With out another word, he ushered me over to the elevator and pressed the up button. "Kia's been asking about you," He told me. He gave me a smile much like the nurse's, and I tentatively returned it as I pulled two CDs out of my bag.
"I brought Joe, Kevin and Nick," I said, sniffling and trying not to show how weak I felt. The Jonas Brothers always calmed me, as well as Kia. I knew it was her life long dream, as well as mine, to meet them and see them in concert. The elevator finally binged, and me and my dad stepped off of the elevator onto the second floor.
"She's in room 705 --" I almost choked on my own breath at that as the lyrics ran through my head. "I was fine, till 7:05…" He rolled his eyes, knowing what I was tripping over. "But Lina, we gotta wait here for a moment." My mom and all of my brothers were standing outside of the room, and I looked from each face cautiously. My mom looked more worried than ever; each of my brothers seemed anxious and tired; dad looked stressed out, more than usual.
"What's going on?" I asked, my voice raising a few notes. We never had to stand outside of her room in the past, even when the doctors were doing tests. I frantically looked from my mom to my dad to each of my brothers. I was surprised to see a small smile come across my father's lips.
"Lina, when your sister was diagnosed, we referred her to the Make-a-wish foundation…" He trailed off, though the smile stayed. "They finally sent some one. She's in there with Kia right now, doing what ever she does, and they are gonna grant Kia's wish," He told me, squeezing my hand. I could feel the smile work its way over my face. Nothing could make me any happier than seeing my sister get what she had always dreamed of. I knew from the start that this wish would involve the Jonas Brothers, and I was so glad for her.
"Oh, that's great!" I said, genuinely excited for my sister. It was right at that moment that her door room opened and a slender, petite woman slipped out, a smile on her lips. She glanced around at all of our anxious faces and laughed lightly.
"Mr. McGoven, you have one of the sweetest girls I have ever met," The woman said as she offered my dad a hand. The tension broke, and all of us were smiling immediately. "It was easy enough to find out what her wish was. She seems to love those Jonas Brothers, especially Kevin. I think I can organize a visit from them, and a trip to one of their concerts," She said. "She also asked that her sister be there with her…" The woman smiled at me, and I couldn't help but return it. I was just happy about my sister, and the fact that she had asked that I be there too was not as important. "So, I will be in contact, probably by Wednesday…" She informed us. After receiving many thanks from all of us, the woman was off and I hurried into the room.
"Celine!" Kia cried as she spotted me. She immediately held her arms out in a hug, and I immediately complied after taking a seat on the edge of her hospital bed. "Did you bring them?" She asked me anxiously, her eyes looking eagerly at my bag. I laughed and pulled the CDs from behind my back.
"Sheesh. What am I, chopped liver?" I asked as I handed over the CDs and glanced around her room. "We need to get some posters up in here, girly!" I said as I kissed the top of her head. It was ritual for us to stick up posters of the Jonas Brothers all over, and then get odd glances from all of the nurses and doctors and relatives that entered Kia's room. She giggled at my comment and wrapped her small arms around my neck.
"I'm glad you're here, Lina," She whispered quietly, the first hint of fear penetrating her usually calm voice. It scared me, to see my sister so afraid. I pulled back for a moment and looked my little sister straight in the eyes. She smiled weakly, but her eyes didn't show the same emotion. She looked drained, her face ashen, her eyes dull and her brown hair hung limply around her face. Her thin form was covered in her favorite Hannah Montana night gown, probably because she had been sleeping lately. I knew that soon there would be IVs and that crap hooked up to her, and that thought made me want to cry even more.
"Don't worry, Kee," I said, using my pet name for her, "Everything will be alright…"