Light Penguin: Ohmygosh I didnt realize I never clarified how she knew they were from the stranger...thank you! I'll have to fit that in somewhere in the next few letters...hmm...

Ten days ago from today marked a year for this little fanfiction. I thought I'd be further along in it but oh well. And it's over two-hundred reviews! Please give yourselves a pat on the back or a round of applause or dance on my behalf :P Thank you all so much!

Dear Stranger,

Everyday, Rita cries when visiting time ends. Andrew hasn't come by in two weeks. Her stubbornness ended a while ago, and since then she spends hours staring at the door and checking her phone. She misses him a lot, but there is still a level of pride inside that refuses to allow her to call him.

So today I decided to do something about it. I jumped out of my bed and into hers.

She was shocked, to say the least. Our conversation went something like this:

"Hi there, I don't know if you've heard this from all of the times Darien has yelled at me for doing and eating things I shouldn't, but my name's Serena."

"I'm Rita," she said slowly. "I'm dying."

Wow, how morbid. "Me too," I said, and she seemed shocked to know she wasn't the only one dying. In my mind, I said, "Duh, this is a hospital" since sarcasm probably wasn't going to help me in reaching my goal. "I could die any second. At least you know around when you'll go; you have a few months. You should really take advantage of that."

She looked away and down at her phone, her thumb sliding back and forth over the dark screen. "Call him," I said. "You miss him, and there's no way he doesn't miss you."

Biting her lip, she replies, "But I've been so horrible to him..."

"He'll forgive you, and if he really loves you like the way I think he does, he probably has already. You need to call him and fix your relationship so you both can enjoy the time you have left together." When she remained indecisive, I continued, "Look, I'm a seventeen year old girl who hasn't done much of anything with her life. Then this happens. And guess what: the doctors have no idea what's wrong with me except that this thing in my head is cancerous. For all I know, for all anyone knows,in could drop dead right now. The only person who would miss me is my mom but at least she would be able to stop working two jobs to pay for my medical expenses. I went through chemo, which was ineffective by the way, and I lost my hair," I pointed to the shiny bald head I was displaying. Finally, a tragedy fell upon her eyes and flowed through the rest of her as she absentmindedly reached to caress her own locks of hair. Her grip on her phone tightened, the need for her to be with her love increasing. "I had a boyfriend before I came here too. I thought he was a nice guy, but it turns out I was wrong. When he found out I had cancer, he dumped me. I suppose I should be thankful that he at least did it in person, you know?"

I sighed, looking down at my twiddling thumbs, plucking at the fabric of the blanket. "I'm envious of you, to be honest. Your fiancé tried to support you and be at your side. And you can leave this place whenever you want since the docs know what's wrong with you. But I'm mad at you because you aren't leaving and you aren't going through with the wedding. Rita,that man loves you and you're pushing him away when you need him the most," I raise my tearful gaze back to her crestfallen face. "I wish I was you. I wish I had the choices you do. If I were you, I'd have married him weeks ago. I would be doing everything and anything I wanted, and I would treasure my life and I would treasure his life and his love even more. Because if I had a man like that, I could leave this earth happy and I would regret nothing. Do you understand, Rita?"

She nodded fiercely, sobbing as she did so. "Yes, I understand."

I grasped her hands, holding up her phone. "Then call him, tel him you need him. And when he comes, and I know he will, love him. Love him without holding back. And let him love you."

Nodding again and wiping her eyes, she typed with shaky fingers and holds the device to her ear. It only rings once before the man on the other end answers, "Rita?" He sounded both stunned and relieved.

Upon hearing his voice, she finally broke down, completely and utterly. "Drew..."

I smiled, squeezed her knee encouragingly, and left to allow her privacy. Just as I stepped over the threshold though, I bumped into Darien. He stared down at me, his mouth agape. "Serena, I-I..." He glanced into the room at Rita. "What you did...just, wow."

"Do you need a pep talk too, Casanova?" I grinned, proud of myself also.

But his serious reply surprised me. "Maybe."

I tried to analyze him but I couldn't tell what was wrong. I shrugged, told him to make an appointment with my assistant, and went for a walk in the hospital's garden.

Thinking maybe I should do this for a living if I did live,

Dr. Serena Tsukino