Steel My Soul ✓

18 | Hug

I N D I G O

Serenity messaged me at 4:30 a.m. the next day, telling me she was waiting at my front door. I remembered Chancey saying she'd accompany me to watch the sunrise and take a time-lapse of it.

With the camera I'd purchased for my photography class, I knew the quality would've been amazing. There were clouds in the sky, but the perfect amount. I couldn't wait to watch it with someone, and having Serenity with me was awesome. I wanted to know her more, and this was the perfect chance to do it.

"Good morning," She greeted me with a warm smile on her face when I opened the door for her.

"Hey," I replied, steadying myself on the ground as she reached her arms around my waist to hug me.

My shoulders relaxed into her, and I felt her sigh. Before I knew I was going to die before most people my age, I wasn't fond of hugs. Now, they felt more of a warm sentiment than anything, and I needed them most of the time. I was glad Serenity loved hugs as much as I did. If anyone needed one, they'd go to her, and she'd squeeze them so perfectly, you could sleep right on her shoulder.

"Thank you for being here," I told her, meaning a lot more than she probably interpreted.

"Any time, Indi," She murmured and rubbed my back gently. "Are you feeling better today? Chancey said you were feeling sick yesterday. He took you home without being a bother, right?"

Serenity pulled back to get a look at my face, to make sure I meant it when I said, "Yeah, I'm feeling much better today. I had a small nosebleed yesterday, but I'm fine now, and he wasn't a bother, so that was a bonus."

She chuckled, sounding relieved, and it sent a knife straight to my heart. I was lying to her, and she was believing me without question. What kind of friend was I to lie about something so lethal? What would happen to her, or Dawn and Adara if they all woke up to find out that I hadn't? Would they be mad at me for not warning them? Would I have been selfish to not tell them?

I didn't want them to feel bad for me, or to treat me differently. I didn't want to appear weak in front of them or tarnish my own memory. They would remember me as I was and not as someone who lost her battle to leukaemia. I mean, I wasn't even trying to battle with it, and maybe that was what made me weak. I was so ready to give up and let myself die. It was like suicide.

"Are you sure everything's okay? You look distracted," Serenity pulled me from my thoughts.

"I think your overthinking trait has passed onto me," I sighed dramatically, and she gave me a tight-lipped smile.

"Welcome to the world of 'don't trust your brain,' would you like some help getting out of it?" She wrapped an arm around my shoulder and walked us out to my car.

"I'll be fine. I just need to tell myself to shut up," I chuckled, trying to steer away from the subject.

"I think I tell myself to shut up about four hundred times a day," She murmured as she got into the passenger side seat. "Three hundred on a good day."

⭐︎

Ren took me to a park she told me she watched the sunrise all the time. It was clear of trees from ahead, and we were on a slight hill, giving us the sight of the horizon from up here. Most of the town was dark, only a few homes lighting up beneath us. It was quiet and peaceful, with the sound of crickets chirping and a few birds singing.

"I like to come up here when my family is asleep," Serenity made conversation as she helped me set up my camera. "They're a bit chaotic, so it helps to get some peace every once in a while."