"So, the spots are cancerous." Malia explained, rubbing her eyes. "A lot worse than the doctors initially thought."
Jamie sat across from Malia, blowing out a breath of exasperation. "So, what are the next steps? Chemo ca' get started then it's gonna be good. Right?"
Ja leaned against the back of his chair, pushing his dreads back. "It's stage fo'."
"Damn.." Ja's mother cursed softly, smoothing her own hair back. "She's still gonna do it, right?"
Malia nodded. "Yeah. Chances are... slim but she's gonna try and get it figured out."
Tee Morant placed his hands on his hips, looking out the window as everyone took in the news. It was two weeks after Nana's doctors appointment and test results had come in yesterday.
"What you need, love?" Ja's father asked, cutting through the silence. "Anything we ca' do we gon' do it."
Jamie nodded. "Yeah, sweetheart. We're here."
"No, it's fine. I just..." Malia's voice was quiet and Ja couldn't even look at her because it hurt him to do so. "If it doesn't pan out then it's just my Dad, Brook, and... you all so-"
"We hea' through all the steps." Tee said. "Everything gon' happen how it's meant to and we hea' either way it go."
Ja took Malia back to her apartment because that's where she wanted to be for now. She didn't wanna be alone so she requested her friends be there with her for a little bit before she spent the night with her grandma.
"Hi, Lia." Desmond said, giving her a hug. "Nana gangster. She gon' pull through."
Malia nodded, resting her chin on his shoulder. "I know. I missed you. I haven't seen you that much."
"Team stuff starting back up and things like that but I'm here right now." Desmond said, moving out the way so Jaren could hug Malia.
"Hi. You straight? How ya' grandma feeling?"
"She's just a little sleepy. They have her on some medicine until chemo starts." Malia told him. "Hi, Kadre. I didn't know you were coming."
KK hugged Malia, rubbing her back. "Had to bring Kaari to Ja so I decided to see you. I gotta go but I left you something in your bedroom."
"Thanks, honey." Malia said.
Malia greeted Brooklyn and Kaari for a brief second before going into her bedroom and closing the door softly behind her. She climbed into bed and sat in front of the gift box, rubbing fatigue and frustration from her eyes.
She opened the box, smiling at the large picture of Malia and Kaari.
Ja took it one day at his house while Kaari was sitting in Malia's lap, watching videos on her phone. It was a sweet picture but the note KK left at the bottom was even sweeter.
"Thank you for being the best bonus Mom to Kaari." Malia whispered to herself. "There's nobody else I'd rather have around her than someone like you. She loves her Li Li so much."
She laughed at Kaari's small signature at the bottom before admiring the picture once again. It put the slightest bit of ease to her mind, thinking about all the family she'd gotten over the past few months.
Ja crept in the room, shutting the door behind him.
"This is so cute."
The guard walked over, admiring the picture that KK got blown up to the size of a poster. "She had asked me fa' a picture of y'all. I ain't know what it was fa'. This dope, tho'."
