|| 𝐴𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠 || [𝙆𝙖𝙧𝙡 𝙃𝙚𝙞𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙗𝙚𝙧𝙜]

FINAL (2/4)

"Aless?"
Donna knocked on the door.
"Donna!!" Aless exclaimed weakly. "Come in!!"
Angie waddled into the room and hopped up on the bed. "Aless!! Aless!!" She squealed.

Karl had moved her back into her old room. He believed it was much safer that way, and she could have more space and time to herself. Plus, there was a little library in her room, which made it even better.

Aless hugged the ragged old doll.
"Oh, hi sweetie. How are you?" She beamed.

Angie shook her little head. "I don't care about me, I care about you!!"

Aless laughed weakly.

"Really, Aless, how are you?" Donna asked, setting her things down and sitting by the bed.

Aless moved her IV tube out of the way. She was hooked up to a machine. Heisenberg fixed it up, and it made her feel a bit better.

"Pshhh. I'm fine. Really, everybody's blowing this out of proportion." Aless laughed.

"Aless, you've been sick for 2 months." Donna said.
"I don't think everyone's blowing this out of proportion."

Aless sighed.
"I know."

She tickled and played with a frisky Angie, who giggled and hugged her.

"What are you reading?" Donna pointed to the book in Aless's hand.

"Oh, just some book I started reading 10 years ago. I never finished it. Thought I might take up the chance to finish it, Y'know, since I'm bedridden."

Donna nodded. "That's nice."

She stood up. "Where's Karl?"

Aless looked out the window. The leaves were beginning to fall, the once lush trees turning crisp yellow and orange.

"He went out to grab food. He wanted to stay, refused to get out of the house. Of course, I told him he can't do that or we'll starve. So I- hold on, sorry."
Aless paused and grabbed her handkerchief.
She coughed into it.

She looked at the handkerchief and sighed.
"Oh, this is so old. I should probably throw it out."
She leaned over and threw it in the garbage.
"Anyways. Sorry, I started rambling."

Donna shook her head.
"Oh, no worries."

Aless smiled.

"Crap. I have to run to the washroom. Do whatever you want, I'll be right back!" Aless chirped. She got up slowly and pulled her IV with her, using it to keep steady.
When she left the room, Donna sighed.

She looked around to make sure Aless wasn't coming back.
Quietly, she walked up to the garbage can and pulled out the handkerchief.

"What's wrong, Donna??" Angie sat down on the fluffy white duvet on Aless's bed.

She looked at the napkin.

Her face paled.

"I'm ba-"
Aless stood in the doorway, her face falling.

Donna turned the napkin around, looking at Aless.

There was a spot of fresh blood on the napkin.
"How long? How long have you been coughing up blood?" Donna quivered.

Aless looked down.
"Two weeks." She whispered.

"Does he know?"

Aless shook her head in response.
"No."

The woman looked at Aless in disbelief and with intense worry.
"Aless you need to tell him."

"No!! I can't. I just can't. He's going to freak out, Donna."

"It's better he freak out than not at all." Donna argued.

"No. You don't understand, I don't want him to worry. I'm fine, Donna. Really."

"But you're not." Donna sighed, trying to stay calm. "Aless, you're sick. Nobody knows what's wrong with you. Nobody. We've all tried to figure it out. And now you're coughing up blood. If you're not going to tell him, I will."

Aless's eyes widened.
"No!! Do not tell him!! Do not!!"

"Please."

Aless was almost on her knees, practically begging.
"I will tell him. I will. Just not right now."

Donna narrowed her eye.
"Do you promise? Because Aless, like I said, if you don't tell him, I will."

Aless nodded. "I promise."

She crawled back in bed.
The two heard footsteps coming up the stairs.
Heisenberg knocked on the bed frame, smiling slightly.

"Hey, buttercup." He murmured, entering the room to kiss Aless on the cheek.
He greeted Donna as well, nodding in acknowledgement.
Angie waved at him but he only scrunched up his nose with disgust in response.

"Hi! How was the little errand run?" Aless smiled. It was like a switch flipped in her brain. She acted as if nothing had happened at all.
"It was fine. How are you feeling?" Heisenberg pressed the back of his hand on the ill woman's forehead. She chuckled softly and pushed his hand away.
"I'm fine. I've just got the chills, that's all." Aless answered.
Heisenberg's brow raised with concern.
"Do you need an extra blanket?"

Aless shook her head.
"You sure?" Karl said softly.
She nodded.
"O-Kay."

He kissed her on the cheek again and went downstairs, leaving Donna and Aless alone again.

///

Aless had been bedridden for months. She had trouble walking because she was getting increasingly weaker.

She was starting to have trouble breathing, too. Her coughs had gotten so bad, she needed to be hooked to an oxygen machine.

Heisenberg was in the kitchen. Everything had been fine so far for the past week, until he heard her coughing loudly from upstairs.
Alarmed, he dropped everything and ran upstairs.
"Aless??" He called, bolting to her room.

There on the bed, she sat there, coughing and hacking.
"Shit!"

She had taken off the mask, and now she was having trouble breathing.
He grabbed the mask and held it to her face. She gasped, breathing the air.
He scowled.
"Why the fuck would you take it off?!?" He boomed.
Aless shook her head. "I hate this. I hate this.. stupid machine!" She yelled.

"I hate this! I hate being sick! I want to go outside! Fuck, it's going to snow! I can't walk because I've been sitting in bed for months! I feel useless!"
She started yelling about random things, each thing making her more and more angry and made her feel more useless.

She buried her face in her hands.
"I don't want to do this anymore."

Heisenberg pulled her in, letting her bury her head into his chest.
"I know. I know you don't like this, sweetheart. I hate it too. But I don't want anything to happen to you. Aless, you're the best thing that's ever happened to me. You're all I have left because of Miranda."
He rubbed her back.

She took her head out of his chest and looked up at him, tears filling her eyes.
He pulled the mask away for a second to kiss her, and made her put it back on properly.
"I want you to keep that mask on. No taking it off." He snapped.

She sighed and nodded.
"I love you." She said.
He smiled at her and hugged her.
"I love you too, Aless."