The New Girl

            By Caitlin "Jinx" Wasson

Chapter Thirteen

Live

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            "We were lucky," Dr. Readen told Mulder. "She lost a considerable amount of blood but we think she'll be okay. We've given her some medication to help with clotting and a transfusion. She needs all the help she can get. I want to start her on chemo in a week."

            "Do you have any idea how long it will take to kill the cancer?" Mulder asked.

            "I can't say," he replied. "And I really hate telling you this but she's only got a 50% chance of making it through this."

            "Does she know?"

            Dr. Readen shook his head. "And I'm not going to tell her. It will break what little hope she has left."

            Scully came up to him. "She's doing okay. David and Mom are in there with her." Scully sighed. "I don't know what else to say. All she can talk about is going home. She wants to get out of the hospital."

            "We'll let her out tomorrow and she can go back to work as soon as she feels up to it," Dr. Readen told her. "But all of you have got to be alert. She's really sick. You don't know when something like this can happen."

            "We'll keep an eye on her," Mulder assure him. "24/7/365."

            He laughed a little. "I'm sure you will. You two are like an overprotective brother and sister to her."

            "Well, one overprotective sister and an extremely overprotective partner," Mulder said with a smile. "I'm going to go see her." He turned and went inside Rianna's room. She was sitting up in bed watching TV.

            "Hey," he said. "Where are David and Maggie?"

            "Coffee break," she replied.

            He dropped into Scully's vacant chair. "What's up?"

            "I told mom," she said. "About what's going on. She's coming next week. Dad too. I talked to the doctor. I'm scared, really scared." She wiped her eyes with her hand. "You know, the first time was hard enough. But now… I'm twenty-six, Mulder. I'm supposed to be living my life, not lying in a hospital bed, staring death full in the face for a second time." A sob escaped her tightened throat.

            Mulder rubbed her shoulder soothingly. "It's okay. You're going to be fine. You're going to get better. You've got a lot of years ahead of you."

            "But that's just it, Mulder. I don't know if I've 80 years or less than 80 days. Everyone has years to look forward to. I've only got now."

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            The wheels of Rianna's wheelchair glided easily over the hardwood floor of Scully's apartment. Her skin still hadn't lost its deathly pale tone and her weight when she left was a slight 70 pounds. Still, she powered her own chair through the apartment.

            She looked around. Bouquets and arrangements of her thousand red roses as well as many others from her various admirers covered every available surface.

            David put a hand on her shoulder. "Mulder and I will move your furniture for you if you'll just show us where."

            She nodded silently. She'd been quiet and non-talkative for the last day. After rolling into the bedroom, she explained where she wanted everything. "The bed goes over there. I want my desk in the corner and the dressers by the door." Then she wheeled out of the room.

            "I've never seen her like this before," David told Mulder as they moved her black four-poster to the requested position. "Not even when she was worried about passing her FBI training."

            "What about the first go around of cancer?" Mulder asked.

            He shook his head. "She was always given a fair chance of survival then, 70% or better. Now… Well, it's like the cancer is killing her spirit before it kills her body. It's not going to be very long before it kills her. The sad part is, she's letting it.

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            It wasn't late, only 9 PM and yet Rianna was to the point of exhaustion. She readied herself for bed, braiding her long red curls and slipping into her nice, silky pajamas.

            David came into the room. "Sweetie? What are you doing? We're watching 'Steel Magnolias' if you want to see it for the millionth time," he told her.

            She shook her head. "I'm tired. I want to get some sleep." She shivered slightly.

            "You're cold," David said.

            "Well that's kind of what happens when you've got no fat on you to keep you warm," she replied.

            He pulled back the covers for her and lifted her out of the chair. Seventy pounds looked like death on her. "There you go." He climbed in beside her, wrapping his arms around her to keep her warm.

            She sighed with pleasure and snuggled against his warm chest. "Mom called. It turns out she and Dad can't get out until next Friday."

            He nodded. "Rianna, I love you more than anything," David whispered in her ear. "And that's why I'm telling you this. You've got to keep fighting this. You're letting the cancer take you without a fight. You can't let that happen. You've got to try, you've got to fight."

            "I am, David. I'm trying but it's so hard when everything tells you to give up and die."

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