Carson understands why Athena does wish to talk about being under the weather. She wants to process her emotions, label what is going through her mind and body, and report to a safe person when she is ready. After paying for the coffee, Carson takes Athena's right hand in his left: they walk down the three flights of stairs and out the doors.
The weather outside has turned from a slightly overcast sky to a full-blown gray gloom: Seattle's finest weather. A reflection of the storm brewing inside Athena. Carson gently squeezes Athena's hand signaling to her she is not alone. The sky lets out a drizzle, causing Athena and Carson to walk a bit faster...their heart rates quicken, and a smile flashes across Athena's face.
According to the "Supporting a Loved One Through Cancer" brochure, emotional highs and lows are to be expected. Being with the loved one or friend who is experiencing cancer and not judging them is strongly encouraged. Occupying a shared physical space, creating an emotional outlet through active listening, and encouraging the loved one to express their emotions through a hobby are a few ways family and friends can be with the person experiencing cancer.
Carson has been in contact with his older sister, June, since the winter of 2006. June moved to New Zealand in 2006 and started getting back in touch with her family recently. She is not related to Carson by blood, rather, they were adopted at the same time Hector and Luis adopted Carson. Think of their bond as a platonic friendship that mimics a sibling pair: fraternal twins who are not blood-related.
Carson and June are a 'sibling pair' who bonded while in foster care. Luis felt it would be wrong to separate Carson and June, and Hector did not hesitate to take June in with Carson. Luis and Hector had started thinking about building their family three years into dating each other; it took them close to a decade to make the plunge: this due to their personal life styles and a few legal issues. Before deciding to adopt Carson, Luis and Hector could not agree on how many children to adopt or what gender(s) they wanted to adopt.
Luis wanted a male child, Hector had his heart set on a daughter. Their mutual friend, Guss Switzerland, suggested the couple check out a foster-to-adoption agency in Portland, Oregon: Heart and Family. Heart and Family specialize in helping sibling sets, children with special needs, or severely traumatic backgrounds find permanent homes. The foster-to-adopt agency is friendly towards non-straight couples, single parents (regardless of gender) looking to adopt.
After interviewing with Heart and Family, Luis and Hector were assigned a Social Worker. The Social Worker considered Luis's and Hector's wishes. One of the foster families working with Heart and Family had two children that were bonded together at the hip: similar to how cats bond together.
June and Athena get along well. Their relationship is not toxic, but it is not as tight compared to Athena's and Carson's relationship. June it to Athena as Luis is Hector: firm and direct, but loving and caring.
When Carson revealed his plans to marry Athena, June was satisfied. She could tell from their younger years, how well Carson and Athena got along. June also shipped her brother with Athena before Carson and Athena became official.
On the outside, June is fairly straightlaced and stern. Deep down in her gut, June is artistic: she sings in a woman's choir, volunteers at a non-profit arts program for children, and took up Swing Dancing while in college. Since the holidays are coming up, June will be returning to Seattle for an indefinite period of time: Carson is the only person who knows of June's travel plans. He wants to surprise Athena.
The last time June and Athena were together, Athena was in the process of applying to nursing school. She applied to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Seattle University, Portland State, and Saint Louis University. Two of the programs, UCLA and Saint Louis University flat out rejected Athena, while Portland State waitlisted (and eventually rejected) her.
June understood how important nursing school was to Athena, and surprised Athena with a woman's day out. June showed up at Athena's family home unannounced, told Athena to leave her wallet at home, and put on comfortable clothing. Athena resisted at first, but, gave into June's instance after some prompting from her brother, Charlie.
The two women started the day off with breakfast in Volunteer Park: Hector whipped up vegetarian breakfast sandwiches, homemade chocolate scones, tea, and fruit. A five-minute hike and deep conversation followed breakfast. After hiking, June dropped Athena back at her house with instructions to take a shower, pack a business-casual outfit, and be ready for pick-up by 10:00 am.
A two-hour deep tissue massage and manicure-pedicure treatment sucked up the late morning hours. By the time 4:00 pm hit, Athena had nearly forgotten about her nursing school rejections and felt comfortable in June's presence. She felt relaxed, recharged, and ready for more adventure.
To round out the day of adventure, June treated Athena to dinner at her friend's restaurant. Benny, June's friend, had been rejected from nursing school multiple times and ultimately decided to manage a restaurant. Management and cooking were a better fit for him.
June wanted Benny and Athena to meet: for Athena to get some perspective on her situation and understand life will throw curveballs from time to time. She also frequents Benny's restaurant and knew he would comp a meal if she asked.
After a filling meal of steamed broccoli, grilled tofu marinated in a sweet-peanut sauce, and spicy cashew nuts, Athena had little room for dessert. But, Benny served her and June a seasonal flagship dessert: tri-berry tart with homemade horchata ice cream. Benny also served up life advice for Athena: don't give up when the universe and other people say no; forge your own path, this way, you can enjoy the fruits of your labor without feeling guilty.