December 2nd
On December second I woke up and sat bolt upright. I scrambled out of bed and put on my clothes and ran to the hospital. I wanted to go see Rachel, to tell her she was wrong because she wasn’t dead yet. I raced into the hospital and took the elevator upstairs. It felt like forever before the doors dinged open.
“Max!” someone called as I headed down the hall. “Max! Wait!”
I looked back. Ellie was speed-walking behind me. Her eyes were red and she looked determined. She had a piece of paper in her hand.
“Not now I have to—” I said waving her off. She grabbed my arm.
“Max…she’s not in there,” Ellie growled.
“She got out? She’s cancer-free?” I said stunned.
“Max! She’s…not here…she’s not at home…she’s...” Ellie trailed off and I saw tears spring to her eyes.
No.
Nononononono.
No.
“No,” I said. Ellie nodded. She pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket and ran back to get the notebook off of her chair in the lobby. She opened it to the first page. All the petals were gone off of my flower and lay in a sad heap around the stem. Written in a beautiful cursive were the words:
And them Death took her as quietly as a breeze over the hills. Even a good fighter loses a fight once in a while.
I felt the tears well up in my eyes. I would not, could not, cry in front of Ellie. My tears didn’t listen. They started streaming down my face and making my vision blurry. I felt my knees buckle beneath me and I fell to the floor. A sob escaped my lips.
She was gone. Gone forever. Never again would she write another meaningless question in that book or say that I was a good friend or anything stupid like that. I knew I looked stupid, laying there on the ground crying about someone I’d only known for three months and one day.
I went home. For the next few days I wouldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep without being sent into dreams of Rachel falling off of a cliff. I’d wake up crying at night screaming her name. I didn’t go to the funeral and was miserable all Christmas. Christmas afternoon Ellie came over and stood outside my door until I opened it and let her in.
“Max,” she said. She stood there looking at me, her eyes sad. “You look absolutely awful.” I chuckled and watched her from the bed. She stepped quietly into the room and sat next to me on the bed, taking my hand in hers.
“Did you read it?”
“Read what?”
“Her dying wishes. Personalized just for you.” Ellie nodded towards the folded piece of paper on my dresser. It had been sitting there since after Ellie had given it to me at the hospital.
“No.”
She leaned over and planted a kiss on my cheek and rested her head on my shoulder. Most teenage guys would have responded to this in some way but I am not most teenage boys. I just sat there, staring at the paper, willing it to telepathically tell me all its secrets.
“You all should come to my house for dinner. You need to eat something,” she said.
“I know. That’s what Mom says,” I said quietly. She adjusted her head on my shoulder and I sighed.
“You are the nicest boy I’ve ever met. Your mum should be proud of you.”
I sat there in silence until she left. After she left I grabbed the note off of my dresser and started reading it.
Dying Wishes for Max
I, Rachel I. Adair, wish…
1. For Max to find a girlfriend
2. For Max to make another friend
3. For Max to make my little sister happy
4. For Max to be happy
5. For Max’s little sister, Brynn, to be happy
6. For Max’s mum to find love again
7. For Max’s mum to become famous for her beautiful jewelry and paintings.
8. For Max to have the best Christmas of his life
9. For Max not to get pushed down the stairs again
10. For Max to die happy, just like me.
11. For Max to take my sister to Prom
Everyone dies Max. I will never forget you. My dog days are over.
I lie down on my bed and put the little note on my nightstand. I fell asleep with tears slipping down my cheeks and a smile spread on my face.
YOU ARE READING
91 Petals
Short StoryI will post more if I get comments and votes please comment or vote if you read this XD A young, friendless boy befriends an Irish cancer patient and her younger sister.
