Letting Him In

Chapter-19

Quick A/N: The song in this chapter hits sooooo hard. If you haven't heard it yet, give it a shot. In fact, I think almost all songs by Why Don't We are absolutely killer!

Anyway... onto the chapter now😅.

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"We're dancin' on the edge of anxiety's ledge
And I might fall again, I might fall
We're walkin' on a rope of worry and I hope
That I don't fall again, I don't fall"

-Why Don't We, Be Myself

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Elijah

The incessant ringing of his phone woke Elijah from a fitful sleep. Looking at the caller id, he frowned slightly before clicking on the green icon.

"Kade?" he mumbled through a yawn. He buried his head in his pillow, holding the phone to his ear.

There was a rustling on the other end before Kaeden said, "Yeah, sorry it's late. But we need to talk. Don't get mad, ok? So, like, um. Don't kill m-"

"Kaeden," Elijah grumbled, his voice muffled. "You sound like you're breaking up with me, chill out. And can't I not kill you for whatever you did tomorrow, at school? It's two in the morning, bro."

Rolling over onto his side, Elijah tried to get comfortable. There was a small pause as Kaeden made a disapproving noise.

"No, this can't wait, Lijah," he said, sounding anxious. "I should've called earlier, but dad insisted on taking us to a no-phone family dinner to this restaurant for 'family bonding time'. And then I got caught up with school work."

Elijah figured that Kaeden must have realized he was rambling, because he stopped abruptly and took a deep breath before continuing. "Anyway, the point is... I've been thinking about something all day. Remember how when you were diagnosed, you told me that your doctor said Burkitt lymphoma spreads fast? Like crazy fast? And, like, you've been having symptoms for days now, right? So waiting another week seems stupid, and-"

"Kaeden," Elijah groaned, effectively cutting into the other boy's tense rant once more. "I know perfectly well how it works. Do we really have to do this at two in the morning? You're practically radiating nervousness even through the phone, and I'm sleepy. And you're making me kinda freak out. Not a good combination."

Elijah was really hoping that Kaeden would drop the subject, because he really did not like the path this conversation seemed to be going down. But when Kaeden continued, Elijah had to suppress a groan. As if luck has ever been on my side. Why would it start now, he thought with a scoff.

He heard a sigh on the other end of the line as Kaeden said, "Just listen to me, please. I called Doctor Larkson earlier this evening. I know you said that you wanted to wait until you were eighteen so you wouldn't have to worry your parents, so I explained everything to him. It took a little persuasion, but he's been your doctor for years, so a little emotional convincing helped. And he agreed to do the testing earlier without informing your parents; well, unless it's positive." Kaeden's voice dropped at the last part, and Elijah knew he was trying to keep it steady.

Elijah could tell from Kaeden's voice that he was probably just as stressed as Elijah was about this conversation, so he tried not to snap and shut it down like he did whenever his cancer was brought up.

He sighed, sitting up straight and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He groaned at the slight pain that went up his back and stomach when he moved, pressing a hand to his lower abdomen.