Unbroken | Ashton Irwin's Little Sister (COMPLETED)

Chapter 7

I don't want to be afraid, I wanna wake up feeling beautiful today and know I'm okay, cause everyone's perfect in unusual ways

***

| Bailey |

"Hey, Bailey, welcome back," Zoey says kindly.

Oh yes, how wonderful it is to be here.

I give her a small smile as I make my way to an open chair in the waiting room, which is quite full today. Mom joins me after she signs me in and fills out some paperwork. I lean my head on her shoulder, already feeling tired. Mom rubs my back and brushes my hair away from my face. A few minutes later I'm called into the Chemo Room, as I've decided to start calling it, and plop down on one of the ugly green chairs. Zoey grabs a stool and sits down beside me as she prepares to start my treatment. I wince at the needle and then turn away to look at mom, who offers a soft smile and squeezes my free hand. Once the needle is in, Zoey leaves to tend to a patient across the room and I lean back against the chair, letting my thoughts wander until a semi-familiar voice breaks the silence in the room.

"Well hello again," Xander smiles. I turn and smile at him, and he fakes hurt, "I gave you my number, didn't I? Why didn't you text me?" He fakes another pout and I stifle a giggle.

"I was a little busy dealing with the after affects of my chemo," I sass. He raises his eyebrows and holds up his hands in surrender, "Fair enough, sassy pants." I giggle and flip my hair dramatically, causing mom to let out a small laugh.

"So, what's your story?" Xander suddenly asks after a few minutes.

"I was diagnosed —"

"No, not your illness, your story," he says simply.

I shrug, "I'm just a girl in a hospital, I don't have a story."

Xander leans back in his chair and stares at the ceiling as if he's thinking my statement over.

"And I'm just a guy in a hospital," he mimics me. "A guy who's very happy there's also this girl in the hospital."

My heart flutters and I instantly feel my cheeks heat up. Mom glances over her magazine at me with a knowing look, which only makes me blush harder. I smack my head against the back of the chair and turn away from them both, feeling flustered. I barely even know this kid and he's already knocking me off my feet.

***

"So, what is your diagnosis?" I question as a nurse detaches Xander from the wires. He glances at me with a smirk, making me feel self conscious. "What? I wanna know!" I raise my hands up in defense as mom scolds me for being nosey, which Xander gets a kick out of.

"About three years ago, I started complaining of back pain," he says, sitting down again. "I didn't think it was anything serious, because I used to play rugby. I got hurt all the time, so I just tried to ignore it. But it got worse over time, to the point I couldn't play anymore. So we went to the doctor and they ran test after test. Finally, I was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma. I had a tumor on my back, so I did chemo and radiation to shrink the tumor before surgery. The surgery was somewhat successful; they got all the visible cancer cells they could see and I recovered fairly well. After the surgery, however, I started having trouble breathing. They did more tests and found mets on my lungs. So, we went back to the basics. Chemo, radiation, surgery. I was in remission for a few months until I had annual scans that showed I relapsed. I'm in a clinical trial now along with chemo, hoping to at least shrink the tumors. And here I am."

I stare at him in complete shock. "I'm so sorry. I don't know what to say," I whisper. He shrugs. "You don't have to say anything. I'm still alive, aren't I?" I give him a small smile and he grins cheekily back at me. He sure is something else.

"So what about you, Princess?" Xander questions. Mom raises an eyebrow, as do I, "Princess?" I question. Xander shrugs, trying to hide the flush of his pale cheeks. I giggle and thank the nurse after adjusting my IV; thankfully I only have another half hour to go.

"About two months ago I went to my yearly physical and my usual Doctor wasn't there. The replacement was an oncology specialist that noticed a few warning signs. We had tests done and she concluded I have leukemia. So, here I am," I say with a shrug. Mom stares down at her lap, biting her lip. I glance at her and Xander gives me a sad smile upon looking at her also.

"Xander, let's go," a woman calls from the door. She's tall and slender with her hair bulled into a bun at the back of her head. Her eyes are green like Xander's, but different somehow. They seem colder, and her face is hard and blank, her mouth in a straight line. She's wearing a black, tight fitting pencil skirt and a white blouse with an expensive looking gold chain around her neck.

Xander immediately tenses. "Coming mom," he says, glancing at me. "Bye," he whispers before slowly making his way over to her. She straightens his shirt collar before placing her hand on the small of his back and leading him down the hall and out of sight. I idly wonder what she's like to him at home; are they close? She seems like a very strict and professional woman, does that have an effect on their relationship? I make a mental note to ask him about it next week when I see him in person again, seeing as that doesn't seem like an appropriate conversation to have by texting.

I'm snapped out of my thoughts when Zoey returns and pulls the needle out of my arm, "You're all set sweetie," she says with a smile. I thank her and mom signs a few papers before we're finally free to leave. I'm a little bit dizzy as we walk out to the car, and immediately upon arriving home I rush inside to empty the contents of my stomach yet again.

A/N - I'm sorry I haven't updated! I've actually been busy so far this summer, hehe, but I'll try to update as frequently as possible. I hope you're all having an amazing day! Xoxo - Em:)