Having to hide Hamza's secret for the first time was killing me from the inside. No matter how hard I tried to convince myself that everything would be fine, I couldn't. And how could I, despite losing my father to lung cancer? How could I be so self-centered, not only willing to lose our friendship but also willing to lose him forever?
"I can't just watch him do this to himself. How I call myself his friend, his best friend and let him kill himself?" I asked myself.
Hence, I decided to talk to him. Maybe I could change his mind. Maybe he would understand. Maybe I wouldn't have to lose him after all. I just had to give it a try.
*************
As expected, there he was at the back side of college with his new "friends," smoking vape. His eyes lit up when he saw me. He handed his vape to the boy next to him and rushed towards me.
"Where have you been?" I asked him as he came up.
"Missing me that much?" He pouted with his arms spread out, coming close as if to embrace me. I pushed him away.
"Hamza, I am serious. You need to stop this."
He laughed.
"You think a little vape is going to kill me?" When he looked at my frown, he quickly added, "A vape is the last thing that kills me, I promise."
"Yeah, and you better keep that promise. Lung cancer ain't much of a healer."
"There we go again. My best friend's mamtacoming out again."
"That is because I know how painful it is. I lost my father to lung cancer. I am not losing my best friend to it too."
He sighed. "Seriously? Bro, I ain't getting lung cancer from a little vaping."
Frustrated, he turned and began to leave.
"My father got lung cancer because of smoking," I exclaimed.
He turned around.
"Look, I am sorry that your father died due to smoking, but I am not going to die by vaping, at least not anytime soon. I am barely 19; I have a whole life ahead of me."
"Now you are being unrealistically optimistic."
"Save it." He had already turned around and began to march back.
I knew what I had to do. I might lose my friend this way, but it seemed that losing him was inevitable.
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Teen FictionHafsa's life was perfect, but now cancer has ruined it all. Bilal's life is a mess, and it is entirely his fault. Ulfat has a dark secret, and it is killing her from within. Hamza's life was never perfect, but now it just got worse. They're all j...
