Disclaimer: Not mine, don't sue.
A/N: So, I'm sitting here watching the HSM dance-along. And dancing badly. LOL I just thought I'd share.
Sorry this took so long. I had massive amounts of math and Latin homework the past few days. Ick. LOL
Random moment of the chapter: Grr, I was so mad that Chloe won Project Runway. I liked Daniel more. He was cute :( lol
So, anyway, here is chapter 6. Poor Troy. You're all going to hate me soon. :D
Enjoy!
"So, we'll drop back to the camp and pick up your tuff, then head home," Jack said, as they all walked out to the Bolton's car. "Chad'll drive your car home, and we'll go see Dr. Michaels first thing tomorrow."
Troy nodded, his face locked in the same stony expression he had worn since Dr. Wilson had released him from the hospital. They reached the car, and Gabriella pulled the door open for him, sliding in next to him. Chad took the third seat in the back, and Troy's parents sat up front.
"Are you okay?" Gabriella asked softly, tenderly brushing his hair behind his ear as she watched him stare straight in front of him as they pulled out of the parking lot.
"Yeah, it's just-it's starting to sink in now," Troy said quietly, unable to keep the slight quiver out of his voice as his eyes began to sting with coming tears.
Chad rested his head on the window, looking sadly at the passing scenery. In contrast to Troy's calmness the past day, Chad had been nearly hysterical at several points, terrified of losing his best friend. Now he remained silent, as did everyone else, the possibilities of the future closing in on them.
"You can beat this," Gabriella whispered, kissing Troy on the forehead.
Troy's reply was cut off by his father.
"We're here."
Sighing, Troy got out of the car, holding up a hand when Gabriella tried to follow him.
"Let me do this alone," he said, taking her hand in his. Gabriella nodded, seeing the symbolism in his eyes. To Troy, this was the equivalent of giving up his dreams, something he needed to be alone for.
"I love you."
"Love you." Sighing, Troy and Chad walked back to the dorms, slowly, the implications of Troy's diagnosis finally beginning to close in on them.
"So, man, how are you?" Kyle asked, jogging out of the cafeteria as he saw Troy and Chad walking past. It was lunch time. He reached the pair, and his face fell when he saw the look on Troy's. "Troy? Man, what's wrong?"
"I-I'm not coming back, Kyle. I have-I'm sick."
"What do you mean, sick?" Kyle asked, clearly confused.
"Kyle, I-I'm just sick, okay? I don't want to talk about it," Troy said dejectedly. He felt that actually saying the word would make it final, a death sentence.
"Okay," Kyle said, taking the hint and dropping the subject. "We're gonna miss you on the court."
"I'm gonna miss it," Troy sighed, looking wistfully toward the gym.
"Maybe I'll see you around sometime," Kyle said, slapping hands with Troy the way every teenage boy high-fives his friends.
"Maybe."
"Bye. Take care of yourself," Kyle said, watching as Troy and Chad walked toward their dorm room. Troy waved a hand over his shoulder, before turning as he thought of something.
"Tell the team I'm sorry. And tell them I said goodbye."
Kyle nodded, and turned back into the lunch room. Troy and Chad continued to the dorms.
Barely ten minutes later, both were walking out to the Bolton's car, their bags slung over their shoulders.
"Here's the keys," Troy said, pulling them from his bag and tossing them to his friend.
"See you in New Mexico."
"See you."
Chad continued toward Troy's SUV, while Troy climbed back in next to Gabriella.
"Are we ready?" Jack asked, turning around and looking at his son. Troy nodded, then rested his head tiredly on Gabriella's shoulder, closing his eyes and breathing deeply.
"So, I've looked over your tests, and I have to say I agree with Dr. Wilson's diagnosis." Troy put his head in his hands, unable to look Dr. Michaels in the eye. He was currently sitting at the doctor's desk, his parents on either side of him. Gabriella was waiting right outside the door.
"What are our options?" Jack asked, trying to remain calm.
"Well, obviously, we can't operate. Radiation therapy might work, but the safest bet is chemotherapy. I'd like to get Troy started on chemo treatments as soon as possible. Further down the line we may need to consider a bone marrow transplant, but we have to wait and see."
"Chemo?" Kellie asked, her voice breaking slightly.
"I know it's not glamorous, but it's Troy's best chance at beating this." Dr. Michaels looked at Troy, resting his pen against the chart on his desk. "It is not going to be easy on you, Troy, but it's in your best interests."
"Fine," he muttered, not looking up. Jack was struggling to reign in his emotions as Kellie lovingly rubbed her son's shoulders.
"When do we start?" she asked, resting her hand on Troy's head.
"I'd like to start him tomorrow. Now, there are risks and side effects I need to warn you about. The drugs used for chemo are very strong, and they usually manage to kill several healthy cells along with the cancer cells. The chemo usually destroys hair follicles, which causes your hair to fall out, and it also erodes the lining of the stomach. Unfortunately, this is the most unpleasant side effect, often resulting in vomiting. We can give you a prescription for Compazine to counteract that, but it is still not pleasant."
Troy had paled considerably by that point, but remarkably remained calm and collected.
"So you want to start tomorrow?" Kellie asked, giving the appearance that she was struggling to wrap her mind around the idea.
"Yes. I can schedule you for an appointment at around 10 or 11 in the morning. If we start now, we can get a lot of the chemo out of the way over the summer, limiting the amount of school time Troy has to miss."
"Let's do it," Troy said suddenly, looking up. "Tomorrow. Let's do it."
Troy all but ran out of the car into the house the next morning, headed for the bathroom. He had just returned home from his first chemo treatment, and already he was beginning to feel it effects. He threw himself in front of the toilet, emptying his stomach.
Troy groaned as he fell back onto his heels, waiting for the wave of nausea to pass. He reached up and flushed the toilet, standing shakily and going to the sink. Filling a small paper cup, he rinsed his mouth, utterly disgusted by the thought of doing that every day.
Slowly, he walked back out to the living room, where his mother had laid a blanket and pillow on the couch for him.
"Dr. Michaels said to make sure you rest. He also said to make sure you drink a lot of water."
Troy nodded silently, falling limply onto the couch. He covered himself with the blanket, taking the glass of water his mother offered, and quickly downing the two pills she dropped into his hand.
"Gabriella called. She wanted to know if she could come over to see how you were."
"Whatever," Troy muttered, closing his eyes and leaning heavily against the pillow.
"I'll tell her to come later."
"No. She can come," Troy replied, groaning as another wave of nausea hit him. He jumped up and ran into the bathroom again. Five minutes later he was back out on the couch.
"I'll call her," Kellie said, her heart breaking for her son.
Troy moaned slightly, resting his head on his arm. He was in the bathroom for the fourth time that day, not pleased at all with the side effects of the chemo. He stayed completely still for another moment, before reaching up to flush the toilet.
"Troy?" Gabriella asked softly from the doorway. He hadn't even noticed that she had come.
"Hey," he whispered, his cheeks reddening as he realized she had probably heard him throwing up.
"How are you feeling?" Gabriella crossed over to him, kneeling beside him. She brushed his hair back, leaning in to kiss his forehead.
"Honestly? Like crap." Troy lay his head against Gabriella's shoulder, closing his eyes. Gabriella gently rubbed his shoulders, kissing his forehead over and over.
"Gabi?"
"Hmm?"
"Don't leave me, okay?"
"Troy, why would I-"
"Gabi, please, just promise you won't leave me alone. I-I'm so scared, Gabi."
Gabriella felt tears spring into her eyes as she held Troy.
"Oh, Troy," she whispered, holding him tighter. "I'll never leave you. I'll stay with you the whole time. We're going to get through this."
A/N: Poor Troy. I feel so mean…:( Anyway, reviews greatly appreciated (as always)!
Coming in Chapter 7: More chemo. Troy tells his other friends. Gabi starts to break down. The horror!