'Til Death Do Us Part
Chaper One
"Okay," Hailey whispers. "Yeah, this afternoon, no I understand, these things happen." As soon as she hangs up the phone Hailey sinks to the floor, to stunned to react appropriately to the phone call she'd just received. Pulling her knees to her chests Hailey rests her forehead there forcing herself to take long deep breaths like she'd trained herself to do so long. The breathing exercise doesn't work and the silence in the apartment Hailey shares with Nathan becomes stifling. Standing up Hailey shifts through Nathan's CDs until she finds one of hers and slips Wilco into the CD player hoping that music will calm her nerves enough to take some sort of action.
You
Always wanted more time to do
What you
Always wanted to do
Within first couple of lines of the song though Hailey realizes that she's made the wrong choice in songs and quickly wrenches open the CD player. Violently throwing the CD across the small apartment's living room it hits the wall besides the door just as Lucas pushes the door open and Hailey crumbles to the floor.
"Hailes, unless I'm mistaken that's your CD's not Nathan's," Lucas attempts to make a joke and in the back of her mind Hailey knows that he must've been sent on a peace keeping mission. Quickly Lucas crosses to her and wraps his arms around Hailey, pulling her tightly to him, "it'll be okay Hailes."
"It's not going to be okay," Hailey responds through her tears. "I need to leave here."
Lucas' expression is serious when he looks down at Hailey, "no, you have to stay here and work things out with Nathan."
Hailey shakes her head, "I can't...I have to go..."
"Hailes..." Lucas begins.
"Luke shut up," Hailey begs, "I have to go to the hospital."
"Why? What happened? Is it your parents?"
"Luke my..."
"No," Lucas shakes his head, "I don't want to hear it. If you're about to say what I think you're about to say then I don't want to hear it, I've heard it enough times since we've been friends."
"Then don't hear it Luke," Hailey struggles out of Lucas' embrace, "but I have to go, the doctor wants me to check myself into a the hospital as soon as I can get things together."
Lucas helps Hailey up and gently cups her face, "Hailes, no."
Hailey nods through her tears, "I saw the doctor two days ago, they did some lab work."
"Hailey..."
"Lucas stop," Hailey pulls away from Lucas completely forcing air in out of her lungs. "Stop. Just stop. I just can't handle this right now, I can't handle you losing it."
Lucas nods, "okay, what do you want me to do?"
"I..." Hailey shakes her head in attempt to clear her thoughts. "I don't know what to do, I can't think."
"Well, you need a bag, right? Clothes and stuff?"
Hailey nods, "yeah."
"Okay," Lucas nods and leads Hailey over to the couch, "you wait here, I'll pull something together for you." Hailey nods mutely, pulling her knees to her chest again, crying. Lucas appears minutes later with a small bag he must have found in Nathan's closet, "anything else?"
"Just my insurance card, it's in my purse." Hailey murmurs.
"Okay, are you ready to go? We'll call Nate on the way to the hospital."
"We're not calling Nathan," Hailey's voice has started to sound more normal.
"Hailes, he's your husband you have to call him."
"No," Hailey shakes her head. "After what he did, no."
"Hailey it's not what you think..."
"Or maybe it's exactly what I think." Hailey counters. "If you're taking me to the hospital then take me, dammit Lucas I'm on my way to the hospital I don't want you defending my husband to me. So if you aren't going to stop trying to convince me of what he did or did not do then I am going to drive myself to the hospital."
Lucas throws his hands up in defense, "okay, sorry Hailes."
The hospital isn't far from Hailey's apartment but the silence in Lucas' car makes it seem longer than it could possibly be and Lucas finally breaks the silence, unable to bare it any longer. "Hailey I'm so sorry this is happening again."
"Luke, this was supposed to be over, in my past. It wasn't supposed to be a part of who I am anymore." Hailey whispers and Lucas can tell immediately that she's crying.
"It's not part of who you are," Lucas responds fiercely. "It's never been part of who you are, when you were sick you were the same Hailey James just sick. And you'll still be the same Hailey as before except I won't be the only person visiting you in the hospital."
"Five years, Luke, they said after five years I'd be cured of all of this crap. This was supposed to be my last appointment, after this if tests came back positive then I wouldn't have to go through all of this crap again. But here I am going through all this crap again."
"It'll be okay Hailey," Lucas assures, "you'll get treatment and get over it again, just like last time."
"Luke, I'm scared, I don't want to have cancer."
Lucas takes one hand off of the steering wheel and grips Hailey's hand, "I know Hailes, I know."
"Ms. James," Hailey's oncologist walks into the hospital room almost as soon as she's settled into the bed. "Will your parents be coming in soon, so we can discuss your treatment options?"
"My parents aren't coming," Hailey responds. "Or at least not right away, they are on the other side of the country, I think."
"You think?" Dr. Hanson asks, "you are a minor and I can't discuss things with you until they are present."
Hailey shakes her head, "I'm sorry, it must not be in my charts, I was emancipated in May. I got married."
Dr. Hanson flips through Hailey's chart one more time, "I suppose I didn't take notice to the new last Mrs. Scott. So you and Lucas finally got married huh?" Dr. Hanson glances at Lucas who's eyes have gone wide and he shakes his head.
"Actually I married Lucas' brother, Nathan," Hailey explains, her heart nearly breaking at the mention of her husband.
"Well congratulations just the same, would you like me to wait for your husband to get here?" Dr. Hanson offers.
Hailey shakes her head, "it's okay. Please just tell me what's going on Dr. Hanson."
"We have to run a few more tests," Dr. Hanson responds, "to make sure that the cancer hasn't spread to other parts of your body."
Hailey bites her lip, "what kind of tests?"
"A chest x-ray, an ultrasound, a CAT scan and a spinal tap." Dr. Hanson sighs at the paled look on Hailey's face, "I know you hate the spinal tap but it has to be done. All of your tests I have scheduled for tomorrow morning so you should probably get your rest tonight."
Hailey nods as the doctor leaves she turns to face Lucas, "Luke, I don't know what to do."
"I'm calling Nathan," Lucas states firmly, "he has to know you're here."
"Luke, no," Hailey shakes her head quickly.
"Hailey he's your husband, he deserves to know the truth, he's worried about you already." Lucas responds firmly picking up the phone from Hailey's bedside table.
"He doesn't know," Hailey's words stop Lucas halfway through dialing Nathan's cell phone.
"What do you mean he doesn't know?" Lucas asks. "You never told him?"
Hailey shakes her head, "and now I don't know how...besides I'm sure he's got some bimbo to hang all over him."
"You mean after the basketball game the other day?" Lucas asks.
"I don't want to talk about it Lucas, I need my rest you heard Dr. Hanson." Hailey rolls over so that her back faces her best friend.
"Okay, I'll be back later," Lucas sighs and walks out of the room just before Hailey bursts into a fresh round of tears.
With hospital sound around her Hailey can't help but be taken back to the last time she was in the hospital, she was just barely 13 and terrified at the thought of having cancer, she'd lost all the people she'd thought were her friends in elementary and middle school with the exception of Lucas. Her parents, who thought of everything as a joke, could barely handle visiting her and for almost a year Hailey's entire life was turned upside down in a battle for her life she nearly lost.
Someone knocking on the door cause Hailey to gasp sharply and brush at her cheeks, turning around she is faced with a friendly looking nurse, "I've got to draw some blood, sweetie."
Hailey nods, "okay."
The nurse nods and then holds up a bag of liquid, "this is some Erythropoietin, it'll help your red blood cells and take it should take care of the anemia you are suffering from and it should make your spinal tap going better tomorrow."
Hailey sniffs and then nods, "okay."
"Do you want me to get you something to help you rest?"
Hailey almost says no but the sounds and smells of the hospital bring back to many memories that she nods, "yes, please."
The nurse nods, "okay, I'll be back with that as soon as I get you set up here."
Hailey nods, closing her eyes and preparing herself for the pain that comes with needles being jabbed into her arms and the wake up call that screams "welcome back to your old life."