A deadly fight
A guest asked for a oneshot of a teen Emma getting diagnosed/in the progression of having a serious disease. Thank you for giving some flexibility :). Another trigger warning here. I deliberately haven't named whatever condition Emma is suffering from, but if this type of discussion would upset you, best give this chapter a miss.
"So what does this mean?" Emma asked the doctor. He didn't seem to know what to tell her. How do you tell a fourteen-year-old that her life may never be the same? If it continues at all? The doctor caught Charming's eyes behind his daughter's. It was a look the doctor had seen all too many times before. A look that said:
Whatever the news is, please, tell my little girl she's going to be ok.
Unfortunately, the doctor couldn't do that. However much he wanted to. Even though Emma was so young, she had the right to know what was going to happen to her.
"It means we will do the best we can for you, Emma." The doctor promised her. It was the best way he could put it. "This is going to be hard, I won't lie to you, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. It won't be easy, and there are possible life-lasting repercussions, but you have a chance." Emma wasn't sure how she was meant to feel about that. Was she meant to be grateful she merely had a 'chance' at a life with possible constant pain and suffering? She was fourteen! She was meant to be enjoying life, having fun with her friends and complaining about homework. Not anxious about hospital visits and, possibly, her life.
Snow could see that Emma was about to go to pieces. She and Charming felt the same way, but they had to be there for Emma above dealing with their own emotions over the subject. Snow quickly gathered Emma into her arms, letting the teen sob into her shoulder.
"It's ok." Snow promised her. "We're going to make sure it's ok. You're a fighter, Em, you always have been. That's how you're going to get through this."
"Your mother's right." Charming added, placing a reassuring hand on Emma's back. He and Snow made eye contact whilst Emma wasn't looking. How could this possibly be ok? Their little girl was sick…really sick. This was possibly going to be a fight for her life and they could do so little to help. All they could really do was be strong for Emma, and pray that she made it through this as unscathed as possible.
