Hey guys! :) Here is chapter 3. To pitbull xox 3: To answer your question do I have any pets. Yes I do!:) I have three budgies and a conure (birds). A guest asked how old I am. I just turned 19. So I thought this chapter would be perfect for diving into more of Gus's backround because Anna already knows lots about her mom. She needs to some about Gus!:)

Enjoy!

~Wallflower95

Anna,

I believe we have a choice in this world, about how to tell sad stories. On the one hand you can sugarcoat it and nothing is too messed up that can't be fixed by a Peter Gabriel song. Believe me I like that version as much as the next girl does. It's just not the truth.

I don't like to sugarcoat things. I was at the doctor's office too many times to count. Nurse and doctors would always say the same thing to me 'Everything will be okay sweeties. Stay strong. You'll pull through.' It was an act to try and lift my spirits. It was sugarcoating the inevitable. Little did they know that I could see right through that act the whole time.

This is why I'm telling you the true story.

The truth is I was a grenade. I was told at the start my cancer was terminal and incurable. So I pushed everyone away and became my disease. I read the same book over and over again. Watched the same show over and over again and my two best friends were my parents. That was it until I met Augustus Waters. Then I realized what it was like to love a grenade. To have a person ticking away until they explode. But I couldn't un-love him. I could not un-love Augustus Waters.

I want you to know more about him. About your dad. Everything. About how he was really good at basketball but actually loathed the sport. How is driving was probably the most terrifying thing in the world and about how much he just wanted to be remembered by the world. I am sure that being remembered by his only daughter is all that he needs.

Go too your grandparents. They want to be involved in your life. They love you and they can never un-love you. Same as me. I love you Anna Haven Lancaster. I can never un-love you.

Okay?

Yours,

Hazel Grace

I took a slow deep breath and placed the letter back in the box. I really like my mom. I liked how she told a story and it ended with my dad. I liked that she was honest and didn't sugarcoat the obvious. I grabbed my cell phone and started dialing my grandparents number when my phone buzzed. Kaitlyn showed up on the caller ID.

"Hello?"

"Hello Anna!" Growing up Kaitlyn always had a slight British accent but I've noticed lately that it sounds more American now.

"Hey Kaitlyn. What's up?"

"Would you like to come shopping with me and Amelia? The boys are having a gaming day." I hesitated. I didn't want to say no to her offer but I really did want to follow up on all these letters. My is sending my places and I want to learn more. I shook my head. There's plenty of time for that later.

"Yeah sure I'll come." I said.

"Great! We'll be there in twenty minutes."

Twenty minutes later, Amelia knocked on the door. Amelia is a smaller version of both Isaac and Kaitlyn. She had straight blonde hair and brown eyes. She was wearing dark jeans with black boots. She wore a purple long sleeved top with a green vest over it. She was wearing some makeup. A little too much to my liking if you ask me. Amelia is only nine years old but she's got some curves to her body which I was really jealous of. Me? I'm ordinary. I'm not drop dead gorgeous. Just simple unextraordinary Anna.

"Hey Amy." I said. I shoved my feet into my chuck taylors and grabbed my bag.

"Hey Anna!" Amelia said. The two of us walked to the car where Kaitlyn was. I've seen pictures of Kaitlyn when she was my age and she was gorgeous. She still is. She has curves like her daughter. Even though she gave up fashion school in New York Kaitlyn was still incredibly stylish. Her blonde hair was tied up in ponytail. you could the sprinkle of freckles across her nose.

"Hey Kaitlyn." I said. We drove to the mall. We talked about school and whatnot. I'm not a big shopper. I hate trying things on because it just wastes time in the day. Usually if I see something I like I just buy it right there. Kaitlyn and Amelia are serious shoppers. They go through the aisles like they're hunting their prey. We came across a shoe store.

"These look nice!" I said with a smiled on my face. I held out some open toes flats. Amelia and Kaitlyn looked at each other.

"But..." Amelia started.

"Our toes..." Kaitlyn finished. I laughed. Kaitlyn believes that her second toe is big and ugly to show off to the world and she passed the same fear down to her daughter.

"Yep. Toe dismorphia." I said. Kaitlyn smiled.

"Exactly what your mom said to me." Kaitlyn said. We actually had lots of the next two hours. After we did clothes shopping we went to the bookstore. Amelia and I were browsing the aisles when I saw something that made me stop dead. It was a sign.

Stay tuned! In three months the highly acclaimed author of An Imperial Affliction, Peter Van Houten will be releasing his newest book!

My jaw dropped.

"OH MY GOD!" I practically shouted. Everyone in the bookstore turned to me and glared but I didn't care. Peter Van Houten is releasing a new book?!

"What? Anna? What's going on?" Kaityln asked. I pointed to the sign. Kaitlyn looked.

"Is that the douche face author?"

"What?"

"The author guy Hazel told me about. The author of her favorite book." I laughed.

"Yes yes it is!"

"I can't believe this he's releasing a new book." I said. I could feel the excitement bubbling inside of me. I wish my mom could have been here to see this. She would have wanted a sequel.

Kaitlyn and Amelia dropped me off and my grandparents house (my dad's parents) forty-five minutes later. I knocked on the door. I was still really thinking about Peter Van Houten and his new book. It's been nearly twenty one years since An Imperial Affliction. That's a really long time! Is he finally going to write a sequel to the book that's haunted me since I opened it. My Grandma said the same thing happened to my mom. She read the book over and over again and she was desperate for the answers. I wonder if she ever got them. But I couldn't think about Van Houten and his new book. It's only been about four weeks since I've seen him on the hill near my parents. I wonder if he felt bad about something? Maybe he had regrets. The door flew open and I jumped.

"Anna!" My grandma hugged me tight.

"Hi Gram." I said, hugging her back. They invited me in for dinner and we sat at the table chatting about school and friends and how I was doing.

"Julie and Martha are dropping by in a few weeks so you'll be able to see the kids." Grandma said with a smile. I love Julie and Martha and their families. I don't get see them much so it'd be nice to spend some time with them. I finished eating.

"So grandma. I was wondering if I could talk to you guys about my dad." My grandparents expressions changed. I know it had been hard them to lose my dad. He was their only child. Martha and Julie had been from another marriage from my grandpa.

"Of course Anna. Ask away." I knew it was hard for them. I took a deep breath and held both of their hands and asked question. It took a long time but I didn't mind. I learned the my father had Osteosarcoma which is curable (unless you're in the unlucky 10% who relapse). My dad had a relapse after he'd met my mom. Before that he had gone to school like any other kid. Was a star basketball player. Before he'd met my mom he had dated another cancer patient named Caroline. They had been together for a year and half before she lost her battle against the brain tumor.

"There's not a day goes by that I don't miss having here." My grandma said as tears rolled down her cheeks. My grandpa held her hand and he sat there quietly.

"Thank go for your mom though." Grandpa said. I looked at him.

"She changed Gus. He loved her so much and that's all that really mattered to him. We are so thankful for Hazel." I smiled. My mom had done some pretty great things.

"Do you want to see his room?" My grandma asked.

"My dad's?" I asked. Grandma nodded.

"We've been in there a few times but... we just can't change anything." She said. I nodded, squeezed their hands and headed down to the basement. It was dark. I put my hand against the wall, searching for a light switch. I found one at the bottom of the staircase and I flipped it on. Hectic Glow poster and Max Mayhem video game posters cover the walls. There was a tv mounted on the wall with an un-touched video games system. The bookcase had a layer of dust. I blew it away. There were some broken basketball trophies lying on the top of the bookcase. I saw a copy of An Imperial Affliction on the bedside table. I sat on the bed and looked at around at the room that once belonged to Augustus Waters.

"I wonder if you're here." I whispered.

"In ghost form of course." I whispered with a smile on my face. I sat there quietly, thinking I'd get a reply. Of course not. I sighed.

"I'm glad you were my dad." I said. I stood up and walked back upstairs. I thanked my grandparents for letting me stay. I had called grandma to pick me up. Before I went out to the car I saw a picture on the wall. My grandparents still had these things they called encouragements around the house. Framed next to the stairs was a quote that read: Things change and friends leave and life doesn't stop for anyone. I smiled. I whispered

"Love you dad."

"Things change and friends leave and life doesn't stop for anyone." The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Hope you all liked that chapter! Please comment and review. Your feedback means everything to me and this story:)

~Wallflower95