Survive: A Darrel Curtis Love Story

Chapter 13

~ Chapter 13 ~

Darrell Curtis's Point of View

Just as I promised, I came by every day after work for the next week and a half. I told the nurses to never mention to the boys that I come by because we always come in after dinner in the hopes that she will let us in. Today was a particularly rough day for her, so I didn't expect her to let us back there.

I was shocked when the nurse said that she had asked for me. 

All of the guys gave me strange looks, but I pretended not to know what was going on. I shrug and follow the nurse to her room.  

"Darry?"

"Yeah," I reply, sitting in the side chair. I look down at the mirror and into her teary eyes. 

"Darry, it's getting worse. It's real bad." Blair is clearly trying to hide the pain that she's in, but she looks even worse than she did a few hours ago. "I heard the nurses and-and…"

"You're gonna be fine," I persist.

"They said the doctor said it was infected," she mumbles. "I'm gonna die." 

"You're not gonna die," I repeat. "You're gonna be just fine, Blair. They'll heal you up real quick. The will. They have to. " 

"Darry, if I die-"

"You're not gonna die."

"Just tell them I love 'em, okay. Tell 'em I wouldn't have it any other way." I close my eyes and lean forward on my elbows. I rub my eyes. 

"Do you want me to get the boys?" 

"I-You can't let them see me like this." Even her voice sounds weaker. She couldn't have gotten this much worse in just a couple of hours. It has to be psychological. Maybe she's just crazy from being cooped up like this for so long. 

"You're not dying."

"I just wanted to tell you,"  Blair whispers. 

"Am I supposed to tell them?" I reply, sighing. I open my eyes and look at her again. 

"No," she mumbles. "Just tell them I'm still not doing well." 

How can she expect me not to tell them that she thinks she's dying? Not only does she think that, the doctor does too. She's not a bad person, but we all know at this point that bad things happen to good people.

Every day I came by, Blair would tell me something new about herself. She'd talk about her mom or living at the church or just what her favorite color was. I know her better than anyone outside of the gang and every time I could make her smile, I felt my heart skip a beat. Her laugh made me laugh, even though it was only a temporary distraction. 

"I'm sorry," I say, grabbing her hand. 

"It's okay," Blair smiles slightly and she closes her eyes. "Can you stay a minute?" I nod. 

And I stayed there until she fell asleep and I prayed she would be there when I came back the next day. 

"How is she?" Ponyboy asks. I'm praying he didn't ask because of the look on my face. I'm trying tk hide it the best I can. "Darry, is she okay?" I inhale deeply and sigh, shaking my head. My lip quivers a little bit.