Well, here's the next chapter. This is for the readers who wanted to see more of Sharon's symptoms and Rusty taking care of her. Sorry it wasn't up earlier but Fanfiction's uploading service was down. Hope you all enjoy it!
That night, after both Rusty and Sharon retire to their respective rooms, does Rusty let out his worry. He changes into his pajamas and lies down on his bed, burying his face in his pillow and begins to cry silently. His body shakes, letting out all the emotion that he kept inside of himself for the entire day, not letting anybody see it. He should have known. He should have seen it. He had noticed that Sharon had lost a little weight even though she was skinny enough. And he noticed that she was tired a lot more lately. But he thought it was just due to the stress from the letters. Once the tears are gone and he is merely trying to stop hyperventilating from crying so hard, he hears Sharon vomiting. It's not loud, almost as if she's trying to hide the fact that she's throwing up, but he can still hear it.
He slowly stands up from his bed and quietly opens his door. He can see light peeking out from under Sharon's door and wonders how long this has been going on and he just didn't hear it. He stops in front of her door, not sure if he should go in, not sure if his presence will be welcome. It's not like he hasn't seen someone throw up before. His mom was always on drugs and throwing up, even once in his lap. But this is Sharon, the strongest woman he has ever known. She never lets anyone see her vulnerable side. But he also knows from what he has looked up that chemotherapy is terrible and anyone going through it should have a shoulder to lean on when needed. He takes a deep breath and then quietly opens her door. He walks around her bed towards the bathroom and peeks in through the crack between the wall and the almost closed door. He sees her sitting on the tile floor, shaking, and leaning over the toilet. Her hair is pulled back in a messy ponytail and she has her head propped up on her arms. Tears fill his eyes because he has never once seen her this vulnerable, never once seen a break in her armor.
Rusty silently squeezes through the crack in the door and then sits down behind Sharon. As he begins to softly rub her back she jumps, startled by the contact. "It's me, Sharon."
She moans and says, "I know. Why are you in here? Rusty, you shouldn't have to see me like this." She is interrupted when she starts to throw up again.
Rusty looks over her shoulder and sees dried tear droplets on the toilet seat. Her hair is starting to come out of the ponytail so he gathers her hair in one hand and holds it while rubbing her back with his other.
"Oh god," she moans. A moment of silence and then she says, "Rusty, go back to bed."
"I'm not going anywhere, Sharon. I'm staying right here with you. Besides, I couldn't go to sleep anyway."
Sharon is about to turn her head and look at him when she starts to throw up again. In the middle of her throwing up, she starts to cry. She wipes her mouth with a piece of toilet paper and flushes the toilet. She leans back against Rusty and continues to cry. Rusty hesitantly wraps his arms around her and pulls her close to him. He moves back against the wall and rubs Sharon's back while his arms are around her. He's not comfortable hugging her, but he knows that it is what she needs, so he does it anyway. He can feel her tears falling on his arm and after awhile he says quietly, "Are you okay?"
She quickly nods her head and then moves to stand up. She grasps the counter top and then slowly stands. She takes a couple steps back, becoming dizzy.
Rusty quickly stands up behind her and wraps his arms around her. "You are not okay, Sharon."
"No, I'm not. But I'm trying to quickly get back to my bed before I get too dizzy."
Rusty keeps his arms around her as she washes her hands and her mouth. He hates seeing her like this, so fragile and vulnerable. As many terrible things as he has seen in his entire life, this may be the worst. The broken expression on Sharon's face and the tears falling down her face. After she wipes her hands on the towel she turns around and shuts the light off, walking out into her room with Rusty keeping an arm around her just to be safe. She tenderly lies down on her bed and softly says good night to Rusty. Just as Rusty is about to leave her room, he turns back and walks around to the other side of her bed. He carefully climbs into the bed next to her, trying not to jostle the mattress. He hears her tearfully whisper, "Thank you."
Rusty takes her hand in his and knows what needs to be said. "I love you, Sharon. I hope you know that." He looks over at her, waiting for a response. When he doesn't get one, he thinks that she has fallen asleep.
After a minute or two she finally says, "I do." She looks over at him and says, "I promise you, Rusty, I will get through this. I won't leave you. But you have to promise me something."
"Anything."
"Don't ever let me give up. It's going to be hard sometimes, but in the end I have to be here for my three children." Sharon says this with tears in her eyes and love in her heart.
Rusty looks over at her also with tears in his eyes, "I won't let you give up. Because I need you and you're the only family I have."
Sharon reaches over and pulls him against her tightly, wincing when he touches her chest. He moves to back away but she pulls him to her tighter. She places a kiss on the top of his head and then whispers, "Good night, Rusty."
"Good night, Sharon."
After Rusty says this they both fall asleep soundly for the night, Rusty carefully tucked in Sharon's arms. Neither of them move throughout the night, Sharon keeping her arms firmly wrapped around Rusty. The blanket is pulled up all the way keeping the warmth inside of the bed. With Rusty safe in her arms, Sharon doesn't wake up worried or having a nightmare. With Sharon holding Rusty, he also doesn't wake up from a nightmare. They both sleep peacefully for the first time in weeks.
Again, hope you all enjoyed it! Reviews and suggestions are appreciated!