“Miss Ryan, we have the best cancer treatment center in the nation right up the road, and if you want to fight this, we’ll stand with you every step of the way. But as your doctor who has slaved over these tests and tried to find every avenue you could take, I would advise you to get your affairs in order.”
“What the fuck does that mean?” I asked darkly.
I felt tears trickling down my neck while I finally opened my eyes to look at my doctor. He was looking at me with pity like I was a homeless cat he wanted to take home but couldn’t. Like I was an abandoned child in a trash can he didn’t know what do to with.
Like I was a drug addict he wanted to help.
“It means you should take necessary precautions. This cancer is aggressive, and it’s spreading quickly. Get your affairs in order, and if you still want to talk about treatment options, I’m here for you always.”
I felt my entire world slip from between my fingertips. A life with Bryan, my art gallery, the chance at having a family again. My sister ran through my head and how she was depending on me to stick around. I knew she would never go through with her vocal dreams if I wasn’t there to coax her into them, so what happened if I was gone?
What about Drew? And Anna? I wanted to see them go on their first date. I wanted to see them fall in love like I knew the two of them would. I wanted to figure out why Ramon Escalante left me his card. I wanted to throw more formal galleries I could tell Jennifer Skyles about.
“What are my chances of survival?” I asked breathlessly.
“Miss Ryan, it’s best not to deal in—”
“What are my chances?” I asked.
I felt a deafening silence settle in the room as I reached my hand out for Bryan. I felt like I was falling into an endless abyss and leaving him behind. Even though I could feel his hand slip into mine, it still felt as if my hand was empty.
But Bryan wasn’t there to take my hand, and I whimpered at the emptiness that had descended into my life as my eyes connected with the doctor’s lips.
“Ten percent,” Doctor Osmunt said. ?
??Your chances of survival are ten percent.”
THE END