"The Ties That Bind"
WRITTEN BY DAYNE DINNING
*This fanfic follows on 5 days from One Of Those Days
# Disclaimer – I do not own Emmerdale or any of the characters used.
Smithy cottage was completely silent; Aaron, Jackson and Paddy were sat in the kitchen, Aaron was sat on the bench and Paddy and Jackson were sat at the table, they were all ready to go. Aaron was staring down at the floor below him and Paddy and Jackson exchanged looks every few minutes, it wasn't as though the atmosphere was awkward, it was more tense than anything. Today was a big day – Aaron would find out if his chemotherapy and other treatments were killing the cancer cells that had spread their way to his lymph nodes in between the kidneys. He was so scared and in typical Aaron style he kept quiet about it.
The silence was broken by the door knocking and then it suddenly open, all of them hearing a loud sigh, Jackson turned to face the doorway. "Oh god" he put his head in his hands briefly. Not today of all days he thought. "Mum!" he got up. "You don't just barge in" he turned to Paddy apologetically as he was about to speak.
Paddy shook his head and waved his hand a little as he shook it off.
Jackson smiled gratefully before going to his mother and helping her with her case. "Hello darling" she smiled widely and gave him a tight hug. She sighed again. "I said to myself Hazel, you've gone and messed up again, Emmer what I said, and then it clicked, you said Emmerdale and then I realised I was in the right place, bloody taxi fares around here, still had to pay it though didn't I?" she sighed. "Not my fault I got the address wrong" she sighed again as she looked around at what she could see from the small hallway. "Nice place" she smiled.
Hazel walked into the kitchen before he could warn her of the mood inside. She immediately felt like she had walked into something and looked back at Jackson and he shrugged a little. Didn't give me chance he thought. "I'm sorry is this a bad time?" she asked.
Aarons gaze remained hidden under his hood as he still stared down at the kitchen floor. Hazel looked at him and felt sad immediately. Jackson had kept her notified about the goings on but she had to be honest, she was not prepared for this as much as she thought she would be. But still, she wanted to be here for Jackson and Aaron, although she didn't know him that didn't stop her caring. If Jackson said he loved him then that was enough for her.
Paddy jumped up from his chair and held out his hand. "Hazel, it's nice to meet you, Jackson's talked a lot about you"
Hazel shot a questionable look at her son. "Good I hope"
"Of course" Paddy smiled as Hazel took his hand and shook it.
Hazel smiled and looked towards Aaron and hesitated speaking to him. Paddy saw this and shook his head at her with a wary face. She nodded too in understanding.
"Mum, we've gotta go to the hospital now..." Jackson spoke.
"Yeah we do...erm, make yourself comfortable, we shouldn't be too long" Paddy smiled.
"Hmmm I don't see that happening, boys eh? Look at the mess, I know I'll have this place sparkling for when you get back" she smiled. "Least I can do, and I don't take no for an answer"
"Oh trust me Paddy you should just let her get on with it, saves arguing" Jackson smirked.
"Hey cheeky!" Hazel shook her head lovingly at Jackson as he approached Aaron.
Paddy led Hazel into the living area to show her around and to give Aaron and Jackson a few minutes.
"How is he Paddy?" she asked.
Paddy unsurprisingly broke down, he had felt it coming for weeks, he'd held it together for so long but now he couldn't, he put his head in his hands. And Hazel held her arms out to give him a hug to a man she didn't even know. "He'll be okay you know?" she spoke softly to him.
Paddy was grateful for her being there, he had Jackson but he needed some one of a similar age to talk too. "But what if he isn't?" Paddy struggled with those words, and he wiped his tears away quickly and placed them back on his face.
"Well...if it does come to that then he has the best people around him, but he's young there's every chance" she assured him.
"But I don't know how long he left it, or if he caught it early, I guess not considering it spread from his first results" Paddy panicked slightly as he spoke.
Hazel rubbed his arm. "Like I said darling, there's every chance, you have to stay positive for Aaron, cause I guarantee he won't be, he'll be thinking the worst"
Paddy smiled "You're a wise woman Hazel – thankyou"
Hazel smiled and nodded. "I know, been told that many times..."
Jackson placed his hand on his shoulder and knelt down to look up at him. "It's time handsome" he smiled. "I know you're scared, you won't admit it but you are, but we're here, all of us – whatever the outcome of today, we aren't going anywhere"
Aaron remained silent and jumped down off the bench and headed for the door as Paddy walked back out and followed him out of the house. Jackson was last and Hazel stood behind him. "Stay strong my love"
Jackson let out a deep a breath and almost trembled with it. "I'll try" his gaze focused outside. "See you soon" he stepped out of the house and opened his van.
Hazel closed the door behind him and stood thinking for a few minutes before setting about with her cleaning.
As he did in the house Aaron sat yet again staring down at the floor, in the same boring waiting room he always had done, it depressed him. Well it wasn't like there was anything else that could depress him lately. Moments later his name was called and Aaron stood with Jackson and Paddy and they followed him into the doctor's office.
There were four chairs set out, so Paddy gathered it was ok for them to be in too. Jackson held his hand tightly as he sat next to him.
The doctor gathered Aaron was on another planet. He opened up his file – he had already seen the results but wanted to double check a few things again first.
Jackson's breath haltered for a good few seconds until the doctor began speaking.
"Nice to see you again Aaron, I only wish it was under better circumstances..." The doctor spoke to which he received no reply. "I've got your results and I'm afraid it's bad news" he spoke softly – Aaron did nothing, he didn't even flinch, but Jackson did. As did Paddy, his lower lip began to quiver and he lowered his head, his hands clasped together tightly.
"You're cancer has now progressed into stage three, tests results show the cancerous cells have made their way to your lungs, this would explain your trouble breathing..." he stopped for a second to allow it to sink in.
"There are further treatments, surgeries we can do but in my professional opinion, they would only prolong the inevitable" he explained.
Tears silently ran down Jackson and Paddy's faces.
Aaron finally lifted his head, his eyes were full but the tears weren't quite coming. "How long?" he spoke.
"With additional treatment" he thought. "Six months to a year, without any more three to six months"
"Okay" Aaron nodded. "Thankyou" he replied and simply let go of Jackson's hand, stood up and walked out of the office and past the reception area and out to the main entrance.
To Be Continued...
