Eva slowly got out of the car with her mother. She hung her head low. Unbidden tears filled her eyes. She didn't want to go inside. She didn't want to face her father and brother. It was just too hard. She could scarcely believe what was happening.

Eva had gone to the doctor that day. She had learned something shocking. She had cancer and she was going to die. She would die instead of live. She would either die of cancer in five months to a year or die from the chemotherapy in a few short weeks. She couldn't have any form of treatment. She was allergic to something in the medicine. It would kill her and cause her more pain than the cancer that had inhabited her body would.

Eva forced her self to walk into the house. Kyogi ran up to his sister and grabbed both her hands. "So Eva what did the doctor tell you?" he asked her. "Did he give you some medicine to make you better soon?"

Eva broke away from her brother and fled to her bedroom locking the door behind her. She threw herself down onto her bed sobbing. She soon had cried herself to sleep. She laid there on her bed fast asleep quietly until Domon came home from work.

When Domon got home Kyogi was sitting on the porch steps with his head in his hands. He sat there sobbing softly to himself. Domon came up and crouched down in front of his son laying his hand on Kyogi's shoulder.

Kyogi looked up at his father. "Oh Daddy I made Eva cry!" he cried out in anguish. "I didn't mean to. I don't even know what I did. She locked herself in her room and she won't come out."

Domon's brow creased with worry. He took his son's hand and led him inside. Rain sat at the kitchen table with a cup of tea in her hands. Her face was tear streaked. Domon rushed to her and wrapped his arms around her. Rain began to sob again into Domon's shoulder. He held her close.

"So what is wrong with Eva?" Domon asked her after a few minutes.

Rain wiped her eyes. "Well do remember how at her last visit they did some blood tests?" Rain asked him. Domon nodded his head slowly. "Well it turns out that Eva has cancer and they can't treat her because she is deathly allergic to something in the chemotherapy so she can't be treated. Our baby's going to die Domon." Rain burst out sobbing again.

Domon once again wrapped his arms around her and squeezed his eyes shut tightly. Tears made their way down his cheeks as well. Kyogi came running into the room from around the corner and threw himself into his parents' waiting arms. Domon and Rain embraced their son and the three sat like that for a long time drawing comfort from each other.

Eva woke up as she heard footsteps approaching her door. Her father knocked softly. "Eva are you awake?" he called through the door. Eva got up and walked quietly over to her door and unlocked it letting Domon in. Domon had pulled Eva into his arms even before she could get the door all the way open. He cradled her small body in his arms kissing the top of her head very hard.

Eva snuggled closer to her father and rested her head on his chest. Domon held her closer to him and walked over to her bed and sat down on it holding Eva as if she might disappear if he let her go. Kyogi also came running into the room with Rain right behind him. He leapt up onto the bed beside Domon, and Domon wrapped an arm around him then wrapped another around Rain as she sat on his other side. Eva smiled at her family.

"I'm not afraid", she whispered softly.