[November 18th, 2021]
Holding her head in her hands, sitting on the bathroom floor, Aurora screamed in pain. She hit her head hardly onto the bathroom wall several times to lessen the pain, not hard enough to hurt her. It didn't make a difference. The pain was unbearable.
Thankfully, her parents were out of home. She was alone so it didn't matter how hard she screamed. Giselle had gone back to her unit as well. So she screamed and screamed, trying to focus on screaming rather than the pain itself. Maybe that would help. It didn't. It hurt so much that she felt like passing out.
6 weeks? 6 weeks in this horrible pain?! That was too long. Just in a day, all her goals and all her dreams were shattered. Broken into such small pieces that her limited vision wouldn't be able to see it. Dr. Matthias said he would treat her for free, secretly. But staying out of home for so long would be suspicious so she never took that into account.
Should she just tell her parents and end her suffering? At least they would get her treated. Not much, at least her pain would lessen. She shook her head. If her mother knew how much she was suffering, she would give up her own life to trade for her daughter's. Even though it hurt so much, she couldn't cry. Tears just won't come out.
She could've felt a bit better if tears would show up. But they won't. Her body had lost its balance. She couldn't even get up from the floor. She grabbed her phone as her hands trembled and searched for glioblastoma. Everything was just negative. Not even a single hope of 'You'd make out of this alive and well.' Even the internet wanted her dead.
As she lost her hope for life, the pain slowly vanished. As if it was never there to begin with. She walked out of the bathroom completely fine, and confused. Just a moment ago her head felt like it would crack open, now she felt like she had never been this healthy before. She grabbed her phone and made a call to Dr. Matthias. A little help won't hurt, right?
She explained to him, her symptoms and pains. He asked her to visit the hospital for radiotherapy. Thankfully, she was 18 now and didn't need her parents' consent to get a treatment. He assured her it won't take long. The tumors piercing her meninges needed to be eliminated to avoid leakage of CSF (Cerebrospinal Fluid).
A radiation therapy, that lasts for just 10 minutes wouldn't be a big deal. But she had to get it administered daily, for five days a week. She wasn't scared of the therapy, rather scared of her parents and friends finding out about her condition. She would never want them to see how much pain she was in.
She ran outside, secretly, even though no one was at home. She was still secretive just in-case 'next-door Giselle' might catch her red-handed. However, she made it safely to the hospital after half an hour of a bus ride.
"Don't be too scared. It's just radiation." Dr. Matthias comforted her before getting her a session.
"...I am not scared." Aurora assured him. "But..."
Dr. Matthias raised an eyebrow in curiosity.
"Will I lose my hair?" Aurora asked hesitantly. "I heard people lose hair after radiotherapy."
"Only from the area it has been performed on. Don't worry too much about it. Hair loss usually starts after 2 to 3 weeks after the therapy. Plus, your scalp is strong. It won't be too noticeable." He assured her.
The session went on for 10 minutes. It wasn't what she expected. No laser beams, no burning, nothing like the movies. Just a calm buzzing and clicking sound, and it was over. She went to home right after. Dr. Matthias felt bravery in her words, and felt as if he should keep the secret. But at the same time he felt guilty for not letting her parents know. He made a call to her father after thinking a lot about it. He felt as if there is no need to hide it.
"Hey... How's it going?" He tried to keep it casual at first, as her father picked up the call.
"Matthias! It's been a while!" Her father was as enthusiastic as well. "How come you remember me today?"
"Uh... There's something I've been wanting to tell you."
Her father could feel the nervousness in his voice. He saw it coming, a bad news.
"Your daughter... Is sick."
Aurora ate food as soon as she returned home. She was feeling better after the therapy. So, she just sat down with her mother and caught up with her.
"Exams are starting soon, I can't wait to brag about you." Her mother said excitingly.
"I might just... Do average." Aurora hesitantly replied, keeping in mind her condition.
"I'll still brag. My daughter said she would do average and she did." She chuckled.
"Mom, after I graduate from high-school... Can I move out?" Aurora tried to mentally prepare her mother.
"Of course! The only rule is that wherever you will go, you'd have to be completely fine. Eat healthy, and rest properly." Her mother said affectionately, "You don't even have to call me everyday you know? I'm not clingy" She added as she chuckled sweetly.
"You're the best!" Aurora cheered up, as she fell closer for a hug.
Her father appeared after the long phone-call and saw them hugging. His expression went places, like never before. As soon as they broke the hug to look at him, he smiled.
"What were you guys talking about? Can I have a hug too?" His voice shook as he sat next to Aurora.
"Of course!" Aurora exclaimed in bliss as she leaned towards him for a hug.
He looked at his wife, with Aurora's head on his shoulder and his arms around her, wrapped tightly. He frowned in worry as he caressed his daughter's head and hinted his wife about his worries. She acknowledged it by passing a light smile and joining in for the hug. Not knowing of her husband's worries, she proceeded with just understanding at first. Explaining could be done later.
[November 18th, 2020]
The last exam was over. That called for partying all night.
"I think I have to go over to my boss' place tonight." Ethan said non-energetically. "Really wished to have Sean's expensive dinner though..." He added while walking with all his friends, on the way back home.
"Just ditch your boss!" Lucy exclaimed energetically.
"Why does he want you anyway?" Aurora asked as she pouted in annoyance.
Ethan let his hand go all the way to his pocket in search of his wallet. This time, not to trigger Sean's alters but to pick out a card. Sean still covered his eyes, ears, nose and hid behind the girls.
"He wants to introduce me to a gig." Ethan showed the card, colored lush green with crayons with words saying 'job gig', all lowercase letters and with black permanent marker outlined finely with red crayon. "It might be a lot of money you know..." But Ethan was convinced it was real.
"You know Ethan..." Sean said as he came out of his cover. "I..." He paused. "The job gig..."
"Alright, Sean! Go back to your cover!" Lucy said as she pushed him behind the girls again. "Look Ethan, any dumb person could tell that this gig..." She paused.
"This gig?..." Ethan eagerly waited.
"This gig is cool. You totally need to go there right now! Right! Now!" Lucy was more than serious, even more than Ethan. "ASAP! This is like, something you should never miss. Your boss is finally willing to offer you something other than over-time work! That calls for taking off right now!" She said as she pushed Ethan all the way to the end of the side road, called a cab and sent him off.
Coming back with a smile, she bragged how she supported him a lot.
"You know Lucy... That gig was a lie, probably. His boss just wants him to work overtime." Aurora explained slowly, trying not to make Lucy freak out for sending her bestie to the boss he had been avoiding because of over-time calls.
"Oh..." She was just as dumb.
Lucy gasped super hard as she panicked. She quickly called Ethan but his phone was already off. It was too late. Giselle gave her a few back pats to console her. They all cancelled the dinner for tonight as Ethan was not with them. Meanwhile, Ethan made his way to boss' place and took a seat in front of him nervously.
"I introduced you to the factory manager 2 blocks away." His boss said. "You said you wanted money to treat your friends... That place pays about right."
As it turned out to be true, the gig, Ethan planned to finish the job quickly and call everyone for dinner. After all, he asked for a gig just to treat his friends anyway. He worked diligently in the coldest of weathers to treat his friends to a nice meal. He earned enough to treat his friends, and Sean's alters altogether. He called all of them for dinner, next to the restaurant Sean always took them too. It was a little less expensive but at least it was food.
"I'm so glad we didn't cancel this off totally. Mom hadn't cooked anything." Aurora sulked and was relieved at the same time.
"What about over-time?" Lucy hesitated as she brushed her elbow against Ethan's arm.
"What over-time? It was a gig, remember? That's why, today, I will treat everyone." Ethan said calmly. "Also, Lucy... Thank you for making me leave early."
Lucy was touched. To think that she didn't mess up, in fact he got a proper gig. was amazing. They ordered a lot of food and let themselves rest together now that they had a semester break. They all decided to sleep outside their house for the night, and for that purpose, they chose Sean's house. Sean lived with his family still, but his house had a secret basement that they kept as their hideout ever since middle school when Giselle found it out by accident.
When they reached his house, they all went to the basement without letting his parents know. When they opened the door they saw a girl lying down on the floor. The girls gasped loudly, trying not to scream.
"Is this where you keep your corpses?" Ethan asked.
"I..." Sean sighed. "These are not my corpses. This is my little sister." He explained as he poked her shoulder, sitting down beside her. "Wake up, pumpkin head!"
She shrugged as she slowly woke up from her slumber. Short, blonde hair and vibrant blue eyes, totally opposite of Sean who had jet black hair and pitch black eyes. She slowly got up and sat, looking at everyone staring at her. She looked at Ethan who stood in front of everyone else and quickly rubbed her eyes and put her hair behind her ears, licking her dry lips once so they don't look chapped. She was a high-school freshman, looking for a date. And Ethan fit her criteria.
"Hey," She waved at him confidently, still sitting on the ground.
"Get out!" Sean sensed her intentions and acted up immediately. He was not one of those brothers who were against their sister dating but he couldn't imagine her dating Ethan. Never. Not even a chance.
"Why? I wanna stay." She blinked her eyes a few times as she stood up. "Or else." She brightly smiled trying to look fresh and kind of succeeding at it,
"Or else what?" Sean was stern.
"I will tell Mom and Dad about your hideout." She quickly changed her stance and smirked, still looked pretty.
"Let her stay man, what could go wrong?" Ethan said, in his good-will voice.
"Emilia, you better not tell Mom and Dad..." Sean said as he sighed.
Emilia chuckled as she quickly made space for her brother's friends, mostly for Ethan. She would stick around him the entire time. He enjoyed her company too, but as his friend's little sister. It was a great night. They sang and danced like never before. Even though none of them knew how to do so, they just shared the feelings.
Ending the semester, and knowing they'll complete the next one together too was a different feeling. Even though they hated studies, except Giselle, they were more than excited for the beginning of the next semester. For their time off, however, they decided to visit all sorts of places and have all the fun in the world.
"To, you only live once!" Bottoms were up, except it was just soda.
But soda was good. The sour and bubbly taste was refreshing for the moment. Now that the exams were over, they just lied down on the comfy sofas Sean had set-up in the basement. Despite being a basement his parents didn't know about, it was still top-notch, well-furnished and well-lit as well. Sean had sophisticated tastes when it came to interior. So, even for a small hideout, he made every possible effort to make it look comfortable and cozy, but luxurious at the same time.
He carried this operation 5 years ago when his parents went to a trip to Thailand. He hired all sorts of people to get this done as quickly as possible. Held secure through a retina scan, he made every possible attempt to keep it hidden. Only Emilia knew from his family, as she also witnessed the process of its building. She made a deal with Sean to only hide it if she receives an entry permit. Which she did, along with Sean's friends, each having their retina scans into the memory of the door leading to their spacious, luxurious, simple yet worthwhile hideout.
"Are you guys staying the night?" Emilia broke the party, asking in curiosity with her mind going places.
"No." Sean sternly replied.
Of course, a sleepover wouldn't be so bad. Why did Sean have to say 'No'? He could've just said, 'They're my friends, of course they're going to stay over at the last exam.' Sean could've said that if it wasn't for Emilia's intentions. She totally gave it off, her crush on Ethan. Except Ethan still hadn't figured out.
"Why? I think a sleepover would be perfect for tonight." Ethan boldly made his statement. "What do you guys think?" He asked referring to the girls.
"Let me ask my parents." Aurora quickly grabbed her phone and started texting her father.
"I love anywhere that's not home." Giselle said as she sighed.
"I'm down. My Mom and Granny might be asleep by now anyway." Lucy said, referring to her only family.
"Mom said okay," Aurora let them know blissfully.
They all made their mind up without Sean's consent but it didn't really matter. He let it go too. If it has to happen, it would. For now, he just wanted to enjoy the night with his friends. 'Sleepover' was just a word, so simple. However, the sleepover they had in mind was spending the entire night doing different things and not sleeping at all. They watched movies, ate snacks, shared scary stories and bunch of memories. Memories that won't ever be forgotten by any of them... Unless...