Niall's Cancer Battle: A 1D Fanfic

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Unexplainable

**A.N** By popular demand, here is the update for today (:

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Unexplainable

**Liam's POV**

Doctor Tonal asks me to leave the room as he goes through some examination processes with Niall. I try to explain to him that there isn't anything that I haven't seen and that Niall would definitely be okay with it, but he insisted that I leave the room for a couple minutes. I take this opportunity to go back over to the woman at the desk and thank her for giving up her own time slot with Doctor Tonal. It's people like her that really show that there is some kind of hope for humanity afterall.

When I get to the desk she's seated and typing at the computer. She looks exhausted and I have to wonder just how long she works at the desk. Always sitting down must be a real bore. I wonder why she needed to see the doctor in the first place.

"Hello again," I greet as nicely as possible. She looks up and gives me a half smile. "Thank you for what you did for my friend," I say. "I realize that I never got to ask your name?"

She sits up straighter and smiles at me again, this time fully. Her face lights up. Her brown eyes soften and look kind. I can't believe I had thought this woman had no kind of feelings within her, no trace of sympathy. I was wrong. I can see that now.

"Marie, and it's no problem. He needed it more than I did," she says.

"So can I ask why you just gave it away? You don't even know us..." I lean on the counter and look down at her. There's a couple grey hair peeking out from under her brown hair.

She laughs and rolls her eyes, making her seem a bit younger. "I know who you two are Liam," she says, throwing me a bit off guard.

"You know my name?" I'm a bit shocked. Marie didn't seem like she knew who either of us were when we had walked in. Well, when I walked in with Niall.

"I have two teenage daughters. Of course I know you're name. I can't go a day without hearing about One Direction or how cute Zayn's dimples are."

"Actually, Harry is the one with dimples," I say with a bit of laughter.

Marie waves it away. "I'm old. I don't remember everything correctly. Besides, I'm not the one obsessed with you boys," she sighs and leans on her palm. The action confuses me a bit.

"Why do you do that?" I ask.

"Do what?" she frowns at me as if I'm the one who should be in the hospital instead of Niall.

"Why do you keep sighing?"

"Oh! Do i?" She sits back up straighter and checks the watch on her wrist. "I didn't even notice. I'm just a bit...exhausted I suppose."

"Maybe you should go home and get some rest. I'm sure there's someone around here who can take your job for the night." She really does look tired. Her eyebrows keep wrinkling together like she's in some kind of pain, or she might just be thinking.

"No, I have to keep working. I've got bills to pay. I'm not an internation singer. I don't make your kind of money," she says tiredly and puts her head in her hands. Her fingers brush back her brown hair and she breathes out heavily.

"I don't get it. If you're exhausted and obviously overworked, why don't you just take a break and get some rest. It isn't healthy to do this to your body."

Marie groans and sits back up again. This woman really needs to get some rest if she can't even sit comfortably in a single position. There's a couple moments of silence as she looks up at me confusingly. I feel like she's going to say something but she just shakes her head and stares back at the computer screen. She starts typing away again, her eyes scanning quickly. In the light of the screen I can see the dark shadows under her eyes. Even her fingers tremble as she types at the screen.