By Chance | Book One |

Chapter Forty Five

Lyra

Two years ago

"Happy Birthday!" I grinned as I came into Bridgette's bedroom with her favourite breakfast.

French toast. Fruit on the side. Apple juice and a small coffee.

The sunlight reflected off the floor through the small slit through the pale pink curtains.

She sat up and smiled before rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "Happy Birthday, Ly. You beat me to breakfast."

I placed the tray next to her and sat down.

"How does it feel to be twenty eight?"

"How does it feel to be fifteen?" She raised her brow and offered me some of her breakfast but I declined.

Bridgette had been doing okay. She was tired but treatment had been going well. She had lost all her hair at this point. She always wore a wig, she always had her eyebrows drawn in lightly. No matter what, she was still beautiful.

I shrugged. "I have a gift for you." I took the black square box out of hoodie pocket and held it out to her.

"You didn't have to get me anything, Lyra."

My throat began to tighten. I tried to focus my vision to keep my focus. "It's not much. I'm sorry."

"Don't say that." She gave me a look before opening the undoing the white bow, lifting the top of the box.

Inside was a light gold locket. Inside was a picture of Henry and Bridgette at Disney. They looked so happy, I wanted her to always remember that. Being there with him.

She picked it up and looked at it, her eyes softened and tears began to pool. Her small finger opened the locket and her hand went over her mouth as her tears poured down her face.

My heart ached seeing her cry. I know they were happy tears, but there was pain also.

"It is absolutely beautiful, Lyra. I never want to part from it." She held it out to me and asked me to put it on her.

She touched it gently after I clasped it. "I have a gift for you too."

I shook my head. "You're not supposed to get me something."

"You are quite possibly the most amazing person I have ever met. I love my locket, Lyra." She turned and opened the door to the light wood nightstand and pulled out a wrapped gift. "Happy Birthday."

My hand shook as I took the gift from her, my lip quivering slightly. "Thank you."

My finger ran down the glossy pink wrapping paper before I tore it open and found two books underneath the wrapping.

One Bridgette had made. It was filled with photos of Disney in Paris. "I wanted you to know what it was like too." She said softly. "I took so many photos I didn't show you."

Don't cry. Don't let her see you cry.

She didn't need that. Not today.

"Thank you, I love it." I grinned, flipping through the pages. She took pictures of everything. From the very start to the very end.
Underneath that was a copy of The Great Gatsby. It wasn't just any copy. It was Bridgette's first edition with the original dust jacket. "Bridgette. No." I shook my head. "This is worth-"

"It is yours, Lyra." Her hand covered mine, squeezing it gently.

"I don't deserve this. This is yours. It's your favourite."

"Our favourite. That is why I want you to have it. You are the only person in the world who could ever take care of this book as I would."

"I brought Chinese home. And cake." Henry held up the brown paper bag and the cake in his other hand.

He didn't waste much time coming over and kissing Bridgette before saying happy birthday to us both.

"How did you spend your birthday?" He asked as he put plates in front of us while we sat on the floor around the coffee table.

"We went out to the garden for a while, we took photos and we watched some of our favourite movies."

I gave her a smile before taking a bite of my chicken.

"How are you feeling?" Henry asked Bridgette and I turned my attention towards the movie.
We spent the night celebrating the rest of what remained of Bridgette's last birthday. Henry gifted us matching charm bracelets with similar charms on them. A camera. Book. Heart. Butterfly. Flower with a diamond in the middle.

After our birthday, things happened fast. Bridgette's treatment stopped working just before Halloween. She started to lose more weight, her skin almost clung to her just her bones. The golden tan and rosey cheek trained.

Her room turned into more of a hospital room than anything. And Henry had left his job before Christmas in order to care for her.

While her smile dimmed, it never left her beautiful face. She always kept a smile for me.