Aiden Freeman

Chapter thirteen (updated/hot version)

"Rachel called while you were out finding the girl. She told me that you should go to the hospital where she is at." Iris told me.

"Is she... dying?" I asked her.

"I don't know." She answered quietly and slowly. She seemed like she was about to cry. "I'm so sorry Aiden." She said and grabbed my face gently. She hugged me, burying my face in her chest. I hugged her back tightly. I felt tears forming in my eyes.

I didn't want to lose my mom. Not her. Johanna has always been there all my life. And I had been stupid enough not to call these past months. I regret not calling her at the least, she needed to know I was fine, and so did Rachel.

"We're going to whatever hospital she is in. I need to see her." I told Iris.

She nodded in agreement and looked at me with sad eyes. Ones I had never seen before. Ones I wish I'd never had to see again. Simply looking at her crying broke my heart. I didn't want that.

-

We packed and told Rudolph that we were leaving to Puerto Rico, but that before we did we would stay at a hotel. Iris exchanged numbers with Autumn and Harry and we were on our way.

We kept talking with Rachel all the way from the pack to the hospital. It was around four in the afternoon when we left, but we finally reached the hospital around six. During all that time, Rachel talked with Iris and me about mom.

Mom started forgetting some stuff, at first small, like car keys or stuff from the job left at home, but when mom literally forgot Rachel's name, knowing who she was, but forgetting her name, they decided to go to the hospital. It was great that they did, because the doctor said that if they would've waited some more weeks, it could've been too big and deep in her head for them to work with.

When we reached the area where mom was, I sensed Rachel. She was sitting in the hallway in front of where mom's room was.

I had never seen her this worried. It broke my heart in more ways than one. She was suffering, and I felt guilty for not talking with her before.

When she finally realized I was there she ran to me and hugged me tightly. I hugged her back

"I was so scared. I was scared Aiden." She said, her body trembling as she was about to cry her lungs out.

"It's okay. She's okay. Mom's okay. Mom's okay." I cooed over and over. Both for her and for me.

When we were both a bit more composed Rachel looked at me and smiled. Then she looked at Iris and her smile got wider.

"I see you two finally got together. Y'know, it was a pain trying to guess when you were finally able to confess to her." Rachel told us and I blushed when she talked to me. "I mean he's liked you since you two met and one of the reasons he wanted a cellphone at a young age was that he wanted to talk to you every day." Rachel told Iris.

"Okay! Look she knows all of that." I said and we all started laughing. Me for embarrassment; Iris for awkwardness; and Rachel for being a jerk.

"Can we go see mom?" I asked once the laughing was gone.

"She's sleeping now, but she's alright. The doctors said she only had to stay for about a month with treatment, then they'll make sure the tumor's gone and we can be on our way."

We walked closer to her room and sat down in the benches where Rachel was sitting before Iris and I arrived

"I'm glad she's better." I told Rachel.

"Are you guys going to stay somewhere?" Rachel asked Iris and me.

"We don't have a place to stay yet. We were going to stay in a hotel." Iris answered.