Fear of the Unkown

Three

Ava's POV

It was fun yesterday. I got to show off my skating skills. I knew I had to keep the promise I made to my mom to make friends with the neighbors just in case they had to take Mila. I didn't want to tell Daniel. So far he and the boys thought it was just vertigo.

Mila ran up to me and pulled at my shirt. I knelt down when I saw tears in her eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Where's daddy?" Mila asked as she showed me her tricycle which we'd taken apart to be able to pack.

I took the tricycle and sighed. I didn't have the energy to deal with repairs. The problem was I never did. "Hey, how about we go play on the trampoline for now?"

Lucky for me Mila was an easy kid to deal with. She rarely argued which made dealing with her and my heart issues much easier. There was a knock at the door and I answered it. "Hi. You're Corbyn right?"

"Yeah. I just wanted to ask if you need help with anything. I also didn't get to say hi properly yesterday," he replied.

"I've gotten everything unpacked actually. Do you still want to come in? Maybe have something to drink?" I asked.

That was the last time I saw any of the boys for the next week. I didn't have the energy to visit. Daniel had come to my door several times but I never answered. He'd called several times as well but I didn't have the energy. Mila knew I needed to rest and entertained herself for the most part. She was sometimes too mature for her young age.

My phone rang and I picked it up. It was Daniel. I set the phone down and rolled over. When I woke up again I saw several missed calls. A message came in. Hi, I don't know what's wrong but if I did something I'm sorry. If you don't pick up I'm coming over because I'm worried about you and the boys said you haven't left the house once.

That was sweet that they were concerned. I didn't want to tell him what was wrong. I hated the sympathetic looks. I didn't want to be known as the girl who could be dying.

An hour passed and I heard a voice message come in. "Hey, Ava. I'm on the way now. I need to see you. Be ready in five minutes because we're going out. Get Mila ready so she can play with Lavender."

I sighed as I got up. A wave of dizziness hit me and I waited for it to pass before actually getting ready. I found a blue crop top and sweatpants. I ran downstairs to find Mila watching videos on my iPad. There was a knock at the door and I answered. Daniel smiled the second he saw me. "Hey, beautiful."

"Hi," I muttered, not looking him in the eyes.

Daniel looked at me and a strange look crossed his face. I looked down too. I hadn't been eating so I'd lost weight since he last saw me. "Are you okay?"

"Mommy not breathing," Mila began saying.

Dammit. We had told her that whenever I got sick she was to tell the first person we saw that I wasn't breathing so that they could take me to the hospital. She didn't know much. She just knew I needed help to breathe sometimes.

I could tell Daniel wanted to ask but he didn't. "What do you want to do?"

Mila reached for my shirt collar. "I'm a little hungry," I answered.

Daniel took me out to his favorite restaurant where we got lost in the conversation for hours. It felt good to get out of the house. We went to the beach and found a quiet place to continue our conversation. It wasn't long before some dark clouds came in above us. We got back into Daniel's car but didn't move. "Ava, can I ask you something?" 

I knew what he was going to ask but nodded anyway. "What's on your mind?" 

He traced the lines on the steering wheel, clearly unable to look at me. "Why does Mila keep saying you're breathing or not breathing? It worries me. I know we haven't known each other for long but..."