❝ You make this messed-up world look so much more beautiful. ❞ Gathering me in his arms, he pulled me close -- his lips seeking mine hungrily.
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The only thing Summer Hale has ever wanted was to live peacefully away from her secrets...
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We finally fall apart and we break each other's hearts If we wanna live young, love, we better start today — Not Today by Imagine Dragons
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"Why should I prepare for something that won't happen?"
"You know what the doctors said," my grandfather whispered calmly. "She won't be able to make it. I'm giving you these options now so you can think about what is best for you and your future."
I glanced away in disbelief. How could my grandfather say such a thing? How could he give me these options now, like his daughter was going to die tomorrow?
She wasn't. She was going to survive this.
"Stay in New York by myself or go to South Korea and stay with you?" I mocked, wiping the tears roughly with the back of my hand as I glared at him. I shook my head stubbornly as the possibility of his words clicked one by one in my head. I didn't want to believe it.
"Summer," he called in a tender voice.
"No, she's not going to die!"
I stormed out of the room, slamming the door shut, the sound reverberating around the house. Wiping away the tears, I walked through the living room and up the stairs to my mother's room, inhaling deeply to control my emotions. I didn't want her to see me spiraling out of control. I needed to be strong; she needed me to be strong.
I stood outside her room for a while with my back pressed against the wall. I focused on inhaling deeply and letting it out through my mouth until the world felt like it wasn't falling apart anymore.
I opened the door, and my grandmother greeted me with a look of concern. "Are you okay, dear?" she asked.
"I'm fine." I walked over to my mother and sat next to her on the bed.
She laid with a blanket over her body, her head resting on a thick pillow that looked anything but comfortable. Her eyes were closed, but I knew she wasn't asleep. She hadn't been getting any of it for a week now. I stared at her face, remembering the way she looked before her cancer metastasized. Her body wasn't taking enough food as she couldn't swallow it without feeling a burning sensation in her throat.
