[ - ]
Table of Contents [Report This]
Printer Chapter or Story Microsoft Word Chapter or Story
- Text Size +
Chapter One

Anita sighed as she sat in the waiting room of the doctors office in the semi-large hospital. She had been early, yet now the balding, middle aged man was running behind. She wondered why doctors could never be on time for anything. The thought had crossed her mind if there was maybe a physicians handbook with a rule in bold print saying Never Arrive On Time For An Appointment. It sure seemed like it.

Anita began drumming her fingers impatiently on the table top next to her. She’d tried reading a magazine, but her attention had been distracted many times, her thoughts taking over. So after awhile, Anita had given up on it. It wasn’t like she was comprehending any or anything. What had landed her there in the first place was when she couldn’t seem to shake off what had seemed to be the flu. She thought back to the day that had started it all...

It was a hot summer day in New Mexico. The temperature had reached over one-hundred degrees, but there was no humidity, making the hotness bearable. Anita and her friends stepped out of the large Olympic sized pool, tired of swimming. Anita wasn’t feeling like herself, once again. She tried to hide her ill feelings though from her friends, Madison, Juanita and Kimberly. She never felt good anymore, and her friends were beginning to worry about her, as well as feeling slight annoyance to her complaining more times than not that she was tired and felt like she was going to throw up.

Anita walked over to her towel, picking it up and rubbing it against her skin to dry off. That was when Juanita spotted it.

“Taylor didn’t beat you, did he?” she asked, her eyes widening in shock at a large black and blue mass on Anita’s thigh along with a few smaller ones on her arms and legs, scattered unevenly.
Anita looked down, seeing where her friend was referring to. She looked back up and shrugged her shoulders.

“No, of course not,” she stated, troubled that her friend would even think so low of Taylor, for he’d been nothing but great to her, “Besides, we broke up two weeks ago.” she bit her lip, knowing she’d forgotten to fill in her amigas with that bit of information, “And honestly, I don’t know where the bruises came from. They just keep appearing. I must be klutzier than I used to be.”

Madison and Juanita looked at her skeptically, not quite buying her excuses. Kimberly didn’t know what to think of the situation. They knew that Taylor wasn’t the abusive type, however, the bruises had to have come from somewhere and they had enough common sense to know that it was due to more than clumsiness.

“Don’t worry about it,” Anita assured her friends, “Nothing is wrong...just running in to things.” a wave of nausea struck her but she hid it. She’d gone to the doctor already for medication to get rid of her flu. The thing was, six weeks later, things still were not better for her.

None of her friends looked convinced and Anita hated lying to them. She didn’t want them to worry though, and they were fretting over nothing.

“Alright, girl,” Kimberly stared, “Whatever you say...” her voice trailed off, still worried about her friend, however decided to dismiss the thought for the time being, “What do you say we go to the mall?” she mentioned, “I’m in the mood to do some spring shopping.”

Madison and Juanita perked up at the idea, grins spreading over their tanned faces. Shopping was definitely a girls best friend, especially to eighteen and nineteen year old girls.

“Same here,” Madison stated, “I need some shorts and tank tops and shit. All my clothes from last year are, like, so out of style.”

“Ditto,” Juanita replied, “Plus I need a new bikini or two.”

The three looked towards Anita to find out her input on the idea. She didn’t reply. She was trying to keep her composure up, concentrating on not showing her friends that she was feeling under the weather again.

“What do you say, Nita?” Madison asked, “You up to shopping with us?”

Anita paused, then shook her head no. Her friends looked at her as if she’d grown an extra head, waiting for an explanation.

“ I don’t feel good. I think I’m just going to go in for the night and rest,” she told them, for a lie would not come to her mind quick enough.

The three friends looked at Anita, and the expression on their faces was unreadable. Anita wondered what was going through their minds. She looked down, brushing a strand of her raven black hair behind her ear.

“You never feel good anymore,” Kimberly complained, “You’re always tired too, and so pale...for living out here, anyways.” she put her arms in the air, proving her point that the hot weather that was always there and constant sunshine should not make a persons complection lighter.

“I’m fine,” Anita assured them, “It’s just stress.”

She could tell that her friends were not buying a word that she was saying and that they were genuinely worried about her.

“Anita, we think you need to go to the doctor, just to make sure,” Juanita told her, “The bruises, paleness, tiredness, always sick...you need to go, just to make sure.” her voice trailed off.

“I already went,” Anita argued, knowing that she was lying, “I’m fine.”

“Please,” Madison asked, “You’re our best friend. We want to know that you’re alright...for surely alright. Please just go and get checked out.”

Anita sighed. Her friends were persistent. She herself was a little worried, which was why she was trying to avoid the doctor at all costs. There was no getting out of it now though. Her friends were worried and wouldn’t let it go until she went.

“Fine,” she replied, sighing again, “I’ll go.”

And those were the series of events that had led her there on that day. It had been two days since the tests had been done, mainly blood tests. They’d told her to come back in two days to get the results of the tests in a conference with the doctor. Dr. Robertson. She rolled her eyes, picking up another magazine. She hated waiting. She hated wondering. It was making her nervous that something really was wrong with her. With all of the tests that had been done, then to tell her to come back wasn’t helping much, although her friends had been encouraging to her. She appreciated it more than anything. They were there for her, and Anita knew they would be, no matter what.

Finally, when Anita didn’t think her butt could take any more sitting in one period of time in the uncomfortable semi soft, semi hard chair, the man she’d been waiting for stepped out of the office, looking her square in the eye. He offered her a smile and Anita stood up, knowing right off that she was next. She gulped, smiling back as she walked, meeting him half way to shake his hand, then entering his office. He rounded his desk, taking a seat in his large, leather chair.

“Please, have a seat, Anita,” Dr. Robertson motioned with his hand


Anita did as told, and for the first time, was at loss for words. Her normal upbeat, positive attitude was not there at that moment. Anxiety had taken over.

“How are you feeling today?” the doctor asked, trying to make light talk, although Anita wished he would just cut to the chase already.

“Alright,” she replied, “Sleepy and all...the usual.” she finally said.

The doctor nodded, looking down at a chart that was obviously hers. She bit her lip as he hummed softly to himself, jotting something down. Her heart thudded in her chest, knowing that the reason she was there most definitely was not over nothing at all. It couldn’t be. The question was, what was it?

“Wh...what’s wrong, doctor?” she asked him, trying to be polite and keep the nervousness out of her voice.

The doctor looked up, his eyes soft yet troubled. He opened his mouth to speak, but closed it, trying to think of the most delicate way to tell the young girl the news.

“There’s no easy way to tell you this, Anita,” he began, “But you have Leukemia.”