Chapter 17

I heard nothing except silence for a while. Owen was feeling for my pulse, and upon reaching it, wrote something down. The silence was killing me, and he noticed.

"What have you been doing lately?" He asked in a teasing way.

"What's wrong with me?' I begged.

He looked at me, and said in his calmest, and most doctor-like way, "I have absolutely no idea. You'll be fine for a few hours, perfect vital signs, no fever, and then BAM! Your heart jut stops working. I wish I could try to sugar-coat this, Jess, but I don't know how. You'll be alright though."

My door burst open, and a flurry of two coats, a lot of hair gel, and panicked testosterone poured in. Jack and Ianto ran to my bedside, each pleading my wellness. I couldn't help but smile at their rush to see me. It made me feel at home.

"Jessica, how are you feeling?" Ianto asked, gently stroking my forehead.

"I feel alright, I guess," I said with truth. I really didn't feel very bad at the moment. "Where's Caleb?" To be quite honest, I had formed a good friendship with the young Jack.

"The Doctor took him," Jack said. Upon seeing my saddened reaction, he added, "He'll come back, we just thought it best for him to be gone until you get better."

I nodded, and we continued to talk for a while. An hour later, the same thing occured. My heart felt like it was being torn in two, and I couldn't move. I let out a blood-curdling scream, and everything went black. I awoke to worry once again. This continued for days. I would be ok, and then my heart would stop. Owen would restart it, but eventually it would stop again.

TWTWTWTWTW

A week went by, and this constant cycle willed me no relief. I wanted to stay dead. My thoughts were unable to be completed, because I was in such great pain. I begged the doctor to not revive me once, and he did. I only woke up from the dead with a worse pain.

Jack called the Doctor, but the Timelord said there was no cure. He was searching all of time and space for one, though.

"Jess," Jack began one day between what I now referred to as hiccups. "I wish there was some way to stop this all. A thirteen year-old girl shouldn't have to undergo anything close to this."

"I'm fourteen." I guess that was one thing I had forgotten to mention. "My birthday was two months ago."

The captain was going to make a remark, just as another "hiccup" began. I braced myself, received a high-voltage shock, and then closed my eyes. "Get the Doctor on the phone for me please." Jack did so without question.

"Doctor?" I croaked into the phone. "There has to be something."

He basically told me to stay strong for a while, and that he would come soon. He and Caleb were searching for something. They were desperate.

TWTWTWTWTW

A month passed, and they had become less. They had gone from twice a day, to once a day, to only one or two a week. It was still stressful, but thankfully I could finally move.

The TARDIS showed up one day in the middle of lunch. The door creaked open, and the Doctor peeped his head out. He spotted me and smiled.

"Jessica! Are you feeling better?"

I made one of those awkward nod-and-shake-your-head-while-shrugging faces, implying that I was feeling a little better. He smiled, and stepped out, allowing the door to shut behind him.

I still looked to the door. I hoped that Caleb was in there. Suddenly the door creaked open again.

The person who stepped out looked completely different than the boy who had left. A skinny twelve year old had walked away, and in his place was a muscular and handsome older one. He had shaggy brownish-blonde hair, which fell slightly above his left eye. He wore a dark green T-shirt with black skinny jeans.

"Caleb!" I yelled as I weakly stood up in a rush to meet him. He noticed my struggle, and ran to help me. I was soon enveloped in a hug that lifted me off the ground. I had missed him so much. "You have changed a lot," I giggled.

"Time stuff," He said with a smile. "Fifteen now." He winked, and I could feel myself blush. As much as I hated to admit it, he was very attractive.

Jack and Ianto disappeared somewhere, and the Doctor went off somewhere with Owen. The girls left after the first two, and Caleb and I sat on opposite sides of a table, just talking, and asking eachother random questions.

"Favorite color?" I asked.

"Green, you?"

"Purple."

The topics varied, and we tried to just make up for the month and a half we had lost.

"Listen Landon," I started. "This whole heart problem of mine has caused us to miss the first four episodes of this season of Chopped." So we like reality TV...

"Oh! We will definitely have to fix that!" He gave me a goofy grin, which made me suddenly think of the fact that he was Jack. It was strange.

We just sat there for hours, and it felt really nice to have someone my age to talk to. Sure he was a year older than me now, but as far as I am concerned, that is as close to my age as I am going to get around here. Tosh walked in after a little while.

"I hate to interrupt you two, but Owen needs to see Jess." She turned directly to me now. "Following the time elapsed, there should be another one coming in about five minutes, and we want to have you ready, I'm sorry."

I started to panic, but stood up calmly anyway. "It's alright, I'd rather be ready first. Landon, you should stay here."

He did not, of course. He followed me, and it started. When it was over, Owen surprisingly gave me a hug, and told me that I probably had another five days before another one.

I was glad that I at least had the people I loved around me. Athough ridding myself of some incurable, possibly intergalactic disease would be nice.

Chapter 17 is done!

It was kind of boring, wasn't it? Please please please tell me what you think. I love hearing from you guys! :) Alright, bye for now! ~Lexi~