The Bucket List

Give That Boy a Prize

Bella slipped on one of Chris' t-shirts. The blue Boys Club Boston shirt that hugged Chris hung loose on her smaller frame. It covered her peach shorts and her long pale legs appeared from the hem of the shirt ending in neon pink socks.

"Hey sweetheart. How are you today?" Chris walked in the door hanging up his baseball cap and tossing his sunglasses onto the hallway table.

"Hey Chris." Bella tugged at her shirt, her brown locks fell into her face.

"What's wrong baby?" He rushed to her side and picked up her face.

"Nothing I'm just tired today." She gave him a half smile resting her palms onto his broad chest. "how was your day?" She pecked him on the lips before pulling out a pizza menu.

"It was good, everyone says hello. Scarlett says that you should come by the set sometime. She says there's not enough estrogen on set." Chris stuffed an Oreo into his mouth.

"Where the heck did you find those?" Bella perked up seeing her favorite cookie and temporarily forgetting about what the doctor had said.

"They were in the cabinet." He stuck another Oreo in his mouth.

"Okay if you're going to eat my food use some manners, don't talk with your mouth full. And don't cram the entire cookie into your mouth at once."

"Yes ma'm----" Chris groaned playfully stressing the a in ma'm.

"That's more like it." Bella winked as she finished ordering the pizza.

------------------------------------

"And Chris was dragging Scarlet and I along complaining something about us being children. I don't know. It was crazy." Chris laughed sipping his Dr. Pepper. A few pizza crusts lay on the plate before him. He noticed that Bella just gave a faint smile, usually she's laughing at the set stories.

They were sitting on the floor in front of the couch using the coffee table as their dining area. Chris turned to Bella sitting Indian style and placing his open palms on his knees.

"Hands." He stated and Bella turned to him sitting the same way, her small hands sliding into his larger ones. Chris picked them up and brought them to his mouth, kissing the knuckles and fingertips, until he was satisfied with the shower of kisses he had rained upon them. "What's on your mind? You seem distant today." His bright blue eyes peered over their interlocked hands and Bella couldn't hold the eye contact.

Tears prickled at her eyes again, and she dropped them to her crisscrossed legs. She sniffed trying to hold in the Niagara Falls of salty tears that threatened to pour over the dam she was trying so quickly to build.

"Oh, Chris." She sobbed, the tears fled her eyes finally and she tried to cover her face with her hands, but Chris held tight. His strong arms reached out for her and pulled her into his embrace.

"Shhh, shh, it's okay. It's okay. I'm here girly." He said holding her close to him. Her face was buried into the the conjunction of his neck and broad shoulders.

Chris could feel her body shaking with each breath, his shirt becoming wet with her tears as she clung to him like a leaf to wet pavement. Every time she wrapped her arms up closer to his neck, Chris held her tighter, so tight that they could've become the same person and it still wouldn't have been close enough.

"Bella, please tell me what's wrong, you've got me worried sweetheart." He whispered into her ear once she had quieted a little. But her grasp on him didn't let up.

"I wont, I don't want to tell you." She shook her head violently pulling away from him and running her hand over the side of his face.

"Why not Bella?" Chris moved her hair from her face where it was sticking to her wet skin.

"I don't want to hear your answer, it's one I dread." Bella tugged gently at the ends of his beard.

"Well why don't you tell me anyways and then you'll find that the answer may not be half bad?" He scooped her up into his arms and set the two of them onto the couch, she was still in his lap, holding onto him for dear life.

"Okay." She murmured, wanting to plan what to say first. But her mind couldn't wait, why were brains so stupid? They just blurt stuff for you! "I have cancer."

"You, what?" Chris looked like someone smacked him in the chest with 5 tons of bricks.

"I have breast cancer, it's stage 3. I went to the doctor's today, that's why I didn't come to the set." Bella repeated with a sigh.

"Bella, why, why didn't you tell me when you had found something first? I could've helped you." Chris continued to stroke her hair, his voice was painted over with pain.

"I didn't want to worry you, you've got Avengers: Age of Ultron filming starting up. You didn't need any more stress."

"Is that what you think you are to me? Just piles and piles of work and stress all shoved into someone's body? Cause if that's so, let's get one thing straight. I would have never became your friend in first grade if I thought you were going to be stress, I would've never begged my mom to let me buy that tux for senior prom, I would've never asked you to be my girlfriend. I don't like stressful people. Baby, I've been with you this far, can't you at least guess that I like you?" He stopped for a moment looking her over with his blue eyes. "I love you so much Bella Alaska Edwards, don't you ever doubt it for one millisecond of your life. I love you so much." He showered her face with kisses, finally some tears from his own eyes falling.

"I go to the doctor's again Thursday." She wiped her eyes and Chris followed suit.

"I'll call Joss and see if I can have that day off, I'll ask him not to tell the guys yet until you're ready." Chris said.

"But-"

"No buts, you need me." He said as the phone rang. "Hey Joss!"