Celine
"Stop it." I tell Julien, who's pushing my wheelchair back and forth with his foot.
"What?" He mumbles, looking up from his phone.
"You know what." I say.
He smiles and returns his attention to his phone. My Uncle Charles managed to light the bonfire, and everyone's sitting around it. I'm the closest, and it's warming me up well.
My dad comes back from the car witb a bottle of water for me. "Here you go, baby," he says gently as he sets it onto my lap. He leans down and kisses my forehead before getting into the vacant seat on the other side of me.
"Thanks." I whisper.
He smiles. I unscrew the lid and take a large sip, then put it back on and rest it in my lap.
"You warm enough?" My dad asks.
"Yes." I say, "I've been warm enough the last five times you asked me."
He leans back in his chair and pulls the blanket on my lap higher. I roll my eyes and look away from him. I meet Amelie's gaze, and she smiles at me. I smile back.
"Race you to the water and back." Léo says to Camilo. At once they burst out of their chairs and begin running on the sand.
I turn around. Léo gets to the water first, and Camilo tackles him into it. I hear Léo yell before he falls. "What the fuck?"
Camilo stands and runs back. He's halfway there when Léo tackles him back. I smile.
A sudden pain rushes to my head, and I suppress my reaction as much as I can. I don't want my dad to start over worrying, because then he'll make me go home and this is the most fun I've had in ages, so I don't want it to end—not even just for me, but for everybody. I'll ruin Christmas.
"You okay, CeCe?" Julien asks.
I nod quickly.
My dad hears him and looks over. I frown. "What's the matter?" He asks me.
"Nothing." I say.
"Do you have a headache?"
"I said nothing." I snap. My eyes water, but I don't know why. I wish everyone could forget I have cancer for a few hours and just treat me normally.
I look down at my lap as my headache worsens. I lean my head back and stare up at the sky, pushing the blanket off of me. I feel my dad look at me, but he doesn't say anything.
The sky gets darker and the stars begin to show more. I count them, tuning everyone's voice out and focusing on the sound of the fire crackling.
This really would be a very nice place to die.
•
The more time that passes, the more tireder I become. I try to hide the fact from my dad, but eventually he notices when he's coming back from the car.
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Teen FictionCeline Monet has lived alone with her mother ever since she was five, when her parents got a divorce and only one won custody over her. But finally, eight years later, her father wins shared custody. After moving across the country and settling...
