Mary entered the classroom with her hand in Joey's. Her head was throbbing, her stomach was churning, her body ached, her chest hurt, and she felt like crap, but she was still here. She wanted to try and finish the school year and graduate high school. If…she lived the far.
Her body had finally gotten along with the chemotherapy. Well…she wasn't as sick, anyway. But it wasn't stopping the cancer from progressing. She was now in stage four of her cancer and had multiple surgeries. As of now, she had a fifty- percent chance of surviving.
She leaned against Joey, feeling exhausted. He gently rubbed her back, feeling everyone's eyes on them. Rumors had spread about Mary. Various rumors. Everyone had known she was ill, but they weren't sure of what. Some said she had an eating disorder, others said she was pregnant, and some believed she was dying, maybe of cancer. But nobody had known the truth besides Joey, Tami, and Dustin.
Joey pressed his lips against her head gingerly, before placing his head on his forehead. "Babe, I think you have a fever."
"I'm fine." Mary sighed. She just wanted this to end. She was tired of feeling like this. It was like having the flu for two months.
"Well just let me know if you want to go home." Joey said, before the late bell had rung throughout the school.
Mary nodded, before taking her seat besides Joey. She attempted to focus her attention on the teacher, but her mind was wandering. And she was struggling to stop it. But as the period went on, she felt worse. The room began to spin and her chest felt tight. She gasped for air, feeling an intense wave of nausea come across her. She suddenly stood up, causing everyone's attention to focus on her. She started for the door, but suddenly fell backwards. Everyone gasped as she collapsed to the floor unconscious.
Both the teacher and Joey ran to her side. Joey gently shook her, asking if she was alright. But she didn't respond. She laid on the floor, her body cold and pale. He checked to see if she was breathing. She was, but her pulse was dull. Multiple students called 911 and one student ran to get the nurse.
But the paramedics rushed in just as the nurse entered. They pulled her onto a gurney and quickly brought her into the ambulance, where they began to perform various treatments. Joey quickly ran out to his car, driving himself to the hospital. He dashed into the hospital, practically stumbling into the front desk. "I'm here for Mary Santiago."
"And you are?" The woman peeled her eyes off of her computer, glancing towards Joey.
"Her boyfriend. Joey Parker."
"She was brought in by ambulance. She passed out in the middle of school. She has stage four of Hodgkin's."
"Oh yes." The woman nodded. "I have not received any news on her yet, but I believe they transported her to the oncology floor. I'll have somebody escort you to the waiting room."
"Thanks." Joey whispered, stepping aside so the person behind him could talk to the woman. He paced back and forth before a man in scrubs greeted him. He led him up to the oncology floor, leaving him in the waiting room. Joey collapsed on a chair, burying his face in his hands. He couldn't believe this was happening. Everything felt so surreal. Who knew what they thought was a cold could turn into a life threatening disease. Mary was suffering and there was nothing Joey could do to help her.
This wasn't supposed to happen. She was such a sweet and happy person. She wanted to inspire children around the world with her dancing and volunteer her time to help sick people. Now, she was one of those sick people. Now, she may not ever dance again. Most people who developed Hodgkin's were cured. But Mary had already been in stage four and it was spreading rapidly. Her case seemed to be bad. Which didn't make sense, considering Mary hadn't done a single thing to deserve it. But sometimes…life just didn't make sense.
Joey fidgeted in his chair, unable to sit still. It was like sitting on pins and needles waiting to find something out about his girlfriend. He shot up, planting his sneakers on the hard floor. He paced back and forth, doing anything to make the time go quicker. He needed to find out something about her. He couldn't wait anymore. He just couldn't. He strolled down the hall, glancing into ever room's small door window. He suddenly paused as he saw the familiar dark curls.
The room was in a state of chaos. Doctors were running around, nurses were taking blood, connected Mary to various machines, and performing multiple tests. Joey wasn't sure what was going on, but a bad feeling swept over him. He watched for another moment.
He strolled back to the waiting room, falling down to the chair behind him. He closed his eyes, struggling to distract himself. But he began gradually drift off to sleep. He suddenly shot up as he heard Mary's name being called. "Anyone here for Mary Santiago?"
He blinked his eyes, slightly raising his hand. "I am. I'm her boyfriend. Is she okay? Did the cancer get worse?"
"Well, she's developed an infection, which is common in patients with Hodgkin's Lymphoma. But the problem is, her body can not fight the infection like a person who doesn't have Hodgkin's Lymphoma. But she also does not seem to be responding to any of the cancer treatments. We're going to try one more round of chemotherapy, but if she doesn't seem to respond, she'll have a decision to make. There is this surgery that most likely will clear most of the cancer. Though it's not guaranteed, there is a ninety- percent chance it will clear most of it. There's a sixty- percent chance to clear all of it. If it only clears most of it, it's much easier to treat the rest with chemotherapy and radiation. But…this surgery is very risky. It's a newer surgery, that only a few of our surgeons are familiar with. There's a forty eight percent chance of something going wrong."
Joey took in a deep breath, trying to take in everything she had just said. "Well, what would happen if she didn't get the surgery?"
"Well, I mean, there's a very slim chance the cancer will leave without the surgery. She hasn't been responding to any of the treatments and I don't think continuing it is going to do anything."
Joey stood there speechless. This was all too much for him to handle.
Review!