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SUNDAY STOOD IN THE HOSPITAL ROOM, people watching from the window.
There were people of all creeds and colors in the parking lot, walking to and from the hospital entrance doors.
Her thoughts were swirling like a violent tornado, cluttering everything in its path.
Sunday's hands wouldn't stop moving, tapping against her t-shirt covered hips as she tried and failed to sort her thoughts into figurative folders: Brandon, law school, paying her father's hospital bills and Brandon again.
How could you be friends with someone you were once deeply and irrevocably in love with?
The answer was evading Sunday, perplexing her.
"What's on your mind, Sunny Bunny?" Her father called to her from his hospital bed.
Sunday half turned to her father and chose the truth that was the safest, "How to pay for these hospital bills."
Henry blinked and then gave her a facial expression that clearly showed that he didn't believe her, "Now what's the truth?"
Sunday moved closer to the bed, pulling a chair along with her, "That is the truth."
"But not all of it. Spill." Henry commanded in a weak tone.
Sunday plopped down into her chair and sighed, considering for a moment, "You remember Brandon? B.J?"
Henry nodded, "Of course. Your first love."
Sunday was opened her mouth a little, prepared to argue that her first boyfriend, Zion, might've been her first love, but the more she thought about how the two relationships had served her, the more she was sure that her father was right.
"Yeah. Um, he plays for the Wizards now. Ran into him at the farmer's market with Jeanie," Sunday looked down at her white painted toes, "He's... He's getting married."
Henry's eyebrows shot up, "Married? Really?"
"Yeah," Sunday let out a pitiful chuckle and could feel some tears flicker to her eyes.
As many times as she discussed it with her friends and told everyone that she was fine, Sunday had never truly taken the time to allow herself to be sad about it.
"I met her. Had this huge engagement ring," Sunday said, a few tears racing down towards her chin, "I wish I could hate her so much but she's nice and she's this bubbly blonde and she invited me to their housewarming party and I how could I hate her when she's been so kind? Part of me wishes she was this rude, sociopath but she's not."
Henry motioned for her to move in and as soon as Sunday was close enough to him, Henry grabbed both of her hands with his one, "You'll move on too. There'll be others."
Sunday gave him a look of disbelief and Henry continued, "You thought the same thing after what's his face in high school and then B.J came along and a few years from now you'll be happy and in love with someone else and you and Noah will be laughing about all three."
Sunday lightly poked her father's shoulder, "You'll be laughing with us too."
Henry screwed up his face in pain as his hands moved hers to his sternum, "You know that I'm dying right?"
Sunday felt her face morph into slight despair. "Pops, don't... Please don't say that."
"It's true. I have cancer, I'm dying. I want... I need to make sure that you and Noah have reasonable expectations when it comes to this."
"I have reasonable expectations. You're gonna go through the chemo, the cancer is gonna go until remission and a few years now, all three of us are gonna laugh and it's gonna be like none of this ever even happened," Sunday swore.
Henry shook his head, "We need to find me a good lawyer to fix up my will. I'll have it so that Noah can take ownership of the shop when he turns eighteen. I hope that I taught him enough about the business aspect of it."
"Wait." Sunday spoke but it wasn't loud enough for Henry to hear.
"I'll sell the house, that'll pay for the bills and maybe we can put it so that Noah lives with you. I know he doesn't really like the cousin he's staying with now. I think he'll like D.C better than Louisville, at least for just a couple of years."
"Wait!" Sunday exclaimed, "Can you... Can you just stop talking like the chemo has failed already? Can you give it a chance before you give up on yourself?"
Henry gave her an empathetic look and Sunday realized that she had been yelling at her father.
Sunday clumsily rose from the chair and backed a few inches away, "I'm... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you."
"It's all right, Sunny Bunny. It's all right. Sit down." Henry said in a soft tone.
Sunday felt extremely condemned, the lump in her throat growing by the second. Tears leaked from her eyes uncontrollably and Henry shakily raised a hand to her cheek to wipe them away.
A light skinned black woman wearing scrubs with Disney characters all over peeked her head into the room, "Visiting hours will be over in five minutes. Perhaps it would be better if you left now before I start the morphine for his lungs. He's not gonna be able to talk much after."
"Okay." Sunday said, "I'm supposed to get Noah from school anyway."
Henry lightly grasped her hand, "When are you going back?"
"Wednesday morning. The drive is gonna be long." Sunday said.
The nurse coughed, "I hate to continue to interrupt but..."
Sunday glanced at the woman, a bit annoyed at her for interrupting her time with her father but conceded to the nurse anyway.
"I'll be back tomorrow." Sunday promised before leaning down to peck her father's forehead.
"Think about what I said." Henry commanded as his reply.
Sunday was pained but she nodded before slipping out of the hospital room.
