Chapter 42: Chapter 42
"Hey how are you feeling?" his voice comes through the speakers of the phone putting a smile on my face.
"Peachy." I reply which he chuckles. He groans lowly as if doing something strenuous. I wanted to comment on it but he beats me to it taking my mind away from that worry.
"I wish I'm there with you." I blush holding the phone tighter feeling any second now it will surely drop from my hand and get ruined.
"Don't worry, I'm fine. Coming home today." wearing my big girl panties and not acting like a highschool girl I said the words boldly. Oh wait! I am a highschool girl. Ugh.
"I'll wait with your favorite Ben and Jerry's flavour and then we can binge Netflix all day okay." a very tempting offer with two of my favorite things to do. How can I resist?
"Okay."
"I gotta go, okay."
"Laters Austin." I smile hanging up.
It's barely a day and I'm wanting to go home. Like run the hell out of here because I hate nothing more than the smell of anesthetic, second that is a hospital in general. I had to persuade mum and dad to tell Doctor Khan to discharge me because I feel more like I'm dying here than when I'm at home.
"Okay you've been cleared to go home." I felt my smile could tear off my face. My reflection
made mum and dad chuckle softly. If only they know how ready I am to sprint out of here.
"Your operation have been scheduled for the thirtieth day of the month. I'm so happy you decided to take a fair chance at operating." she looks at me with a wide smile on her face. "Well, I'll see you all in LA." she says genuinely happy for us before walking out of the room.
"You ready to come home." dad grins hugging mum closer.
"Like so last week Dad." I grin.
Getting home I literally was smothered by Austin who was true to his words. He provided a great distraction the whole day for me, taking my mind away from the fear creeping into my mind. We binge each genres of movies till late into the night. The funny side is that when he left that sickening feeling came back again. During dinner I smile and join the conversation thrown at me by my parent, deep down I knew everyone at the table was on edge. We played round the topic but not daring to bring it up. Five more days to a scary beginning.
We are all trying to be strong for each other tonight and the more nights to come. I want to tell them a famous 'all is well', but I just can't. Doctor Khan said that it's necessary to keep both body and mind prepared because in cases like mine, the body can be willing but the mind is not and the mind can be willing but the body is not. So for a successful operation, both body and mind needs to be fully prepared to fight. As much as the best doctors will be in the room doing what they do best, saving lives, it's useless if the patient having given up.
I told Austin what happened within the past hours in the hospital. I'm for sure glad that his game is before the operation because I really didn't want to miss it. Tossing for the umpteenth time in the past thirty minutes, I decide to go to the window. Clearly I seem to be suffering from insomnia this very night.
"Hey. Are you awake?" his message halts me from moving further.
"Yeah." I look questionably at my phone.
"Same here. Seems we're both tired to fall asleep." I smile.
"Maybe. Got a lot on my mind right now to shut my eyes for a second."
"Same here. Come to your window for a second."
I sigh ripping my blanket off me walking to my window seeing him already seated on his. He smiles and I return it waving sheepishly. He chuckles. We sat in comfortable silence watching the clear sky together. It made my heart heavy, all I want to do is roll myself into a fetus and bawl my eyes out to my hearts contempt. If only life isn't unfair.
"Get some sleep Snoopy. We leave early tomorrow." I look at my phone to notice it's almost a little past midnight. How time flies when you are in deep thoughts.
"Night Austin." he cocks his head to the side, a small twitch of lips watching me move away into the dimly lit room as I got under the covers.
"I love you Snoopy." my phone chimed with the new message. I smile feeling my eyes close in sleep.
In reply, I sent him a kissing emoji. Three dots appears and I wait to see his next message but then it disappears. I sigh switching off the bedside lights placing my phone beside the lamp as force myself to sleep that night.
***
Waking up the next morning, I seem to be in a better mood as I ate breakfast with mum and dad. Something dangling on the thin thread of cheery and gloomy, happy and sad. Soon Austin's horn hoots, alerting me it's time we hit the road.
"Be safe, okay." they both saw me to the door waving me off.
I nod walking over to them for a hug. Usually it's one of them who always instigates the hug squishing me in the process, this time, I was the one to instigate it feeling as my emotion fail me. It was unusually quiet as we spoke to each other in the best language known to mankind, our hearts. Finding myself beside Austin again, he looks at me when I got in. I close my eyes sniffing before expelling deeply now looking at him. He gives a small smile, I choke rushing into his arms wrapping my arms round his neck sobbing and sniffing on the crook of his neck.
"It's going to be okay Snoopy." He coos hugging me back and rubbing my back gently.
After collecting myself together we drive off to the city of LA where two things awaits me. His game and my operation. Both meaning something to me that I hope will come out successful. His rough hands holds mine the entire car ride in assurance that's he's with me while I sunk in the leather seat drifting into the depths of my thoughts shortly after sleep soon lured me in due to exhaustion. Mentally and physically.
"Hey! We are here." My head snaps from him to the tall building in front of us. "Let's get you tucked in, yeah?" I nod following him into the reception room waiting as he took his room card from a man behind a mahogany desk. I trailed behind him till we got to our room.
Knowing I'm too tired for extra activities by his teammates I heard him talking to on the phone the moment we got here, we ended up snuggling in the softess bed I've ever laid on. Like a resounding bell in my head, it screams four days. Four days left to an uncertain future.