Angel eyes

What do we call a killer who doesn't believe in prejudice, who doesn't care if you are an eight-year-old boy going to class one day, living his life with only friends and football practice to worry about? After five years of treatment, Cancer finally did it, ruining Theo's chances of ringing the remission bell again. He had earned the big red stamp of approval, 'TERMINAL,' was all his parents could see. The static noise of repetitive apologies and empty 'we did all we could.' Realistically, they knew they had. They'd exhausted all the treatments, chemo, and new studies, tirelessly hoping for their little ray of sunshine to be able to fit into his Spiderman costume without the space, not having bought another in hopes that he'd recover, gain the weight back and they'd move on. From the hospital, the nurses, the doctors, the drips. As much as they were grateful, the diagnoses reflected in their hearts. Beating relentlessly as their thoughts stilled and breathing staggered. For their three musketeers would soon be down to two. How would they tell each of their children, let alone their mini-hero?

***

The children's wards had three rooms, each affectionately named to suit Theo's favourite superheroes: Iron Man, Captain America, and his own Spiderman. Theo had been there the longest; he understood he wouldn't see most of his friends who left the ward doors swinging again, either because they had recovered or grown their wings. Deep down inside, he knew he would follow the latter group. This was, after all, his second rodeo with Cancer. He felt the change a few weeks ago, the look on the nurses' faces when he stopped responding to treatments. He knew what cancer felt like. He'd grown used to his guest over the past five years. The slickness it held, creeping under his skin, between his bones. He remembers when he first felt sick. At first, they all assumed it was a bug. The week of sickness held strong, though. Until he was better, the colour faded into his cheeks, and the strength bled back into his bones; his stomach was now lined with that same slick feeling. And although his parents chose to ignore him. He'd gotten over the bug and just wanted to stay home, was all they believed. The weeks went by, and the feeling only grew. Until he fainted during football practice one chilly day in October; one second, he was a soldier ready to fight the Huns; next, he was a fish, gulping in air and wishing for water. Waking up in a room painted by the sun was a shock; what happened to his Spiderman murals? That was the first day of hell. The doctors had found the snake hiding behind his stomach, sucking the life out of it, a leech.

From then on, Theo grew used to itchy sheets and hard beds. He learned the names of each nurse; Nurse Grace let him stay up past bedtime in the TV room, Nurse Anna gave him extra biscuits in the morning, and Nurse Olivia cuddled him when he cried, whispering sweet nothings in his ear. These were but a few of the ones he's met over the years, he's only had a few that were mean, like nurse Jane who made him go to bed early when he had a particularly rough time sleeping, she just wanted to watch her own shows on her phone behind the desk while she eats all the biscuits. Throughout the years he's learned three very important things;

When you have cancer don't have a best friend who also has cancer, they will die.
When you have cancer everyone around you is sad, they try not to be but they are, they also know your gonna die
Never expect good news when you get a present

The last one led to this very moment, today had been his day off from chemo, and although he was still quite weak from yesterday's session, he still managed the energy to jump up and into his parents arms that afternoon when they visited. And although he was rather elated to see them, he noticed the changes. The dark circles undertheir eyes, a tige red, the less than perky smiles, almost fake. He suspected what they were going to say, he had felt the slickness grow in the past few weeks, spread to his chest. Infact earlier that week he had to be put on oxygen for three days to help him breathe. He was meant to be better now, they all knew he wasnt.