It was a normal Monday morning for Lucy. She woke up at 6:30 and started to get ready to go to work. She was in the shower when she heard her phone ringing. She thought to herself that she will call them back after she gets out. But then she thought that it was weird that someone was calling her this early in the morning. After she got out of the shower, she walked over to her phone to see who called her. She picked it up and saw that Rachel. called her. She immediately called her back.
"Hey Rachel. Sorry I missed your call. I was in the shower," Lucy said.
"Hey Lucy. This is Jessica, Rachel's mom. She always talked about you and how you were her best friend. I figured you would want to know that she passed away this morning," she said.
"Oh my God! I am so sorry for you lost. If you don't mind me asking. How did she die?" Lucy asked.
"She had stage three breast cancer. I am surprised that she did not tell you," she said.
"Thank you for telling me. I should get off here. I have to get to work. Bye and sorry for your loss," Lucy said.
How was Lucy going to make it through the day knowing that her best friend died? She finished getting ready and left for the station. When she got there, she kept to herself. The last thing she needed was people asking her questions. Everyone around her knew something was off and wanted to know. Angela walked up to Tim to see if he knew.
"Tim, do you know what is wrong with Lucy?" she asked.
"I have no idea. I am going to talk to her after roll call and make sure she is okay to be on the streets," he responded.
They all went into roll call and got their assignments. Lucy went to get the war bags for the shop. Tim waited at the shop figuring out how to ask Lucy if she was ok. She finally got back and got in the car. He started driving and did not think much of it thinking maybe she had a headache. They made it to lunch and Lucy was still being quiet.
"Lucy. Are you ok? You seem very quiet," Angela asked.
"I am fine. Just not really in the talking mood today," Lucy said.
Angela knew something was off by that answer. When has Lucy shut us out like this? They all went back on shift and Lucy was still not really talking which made Tim more worried. Shift was finally over and Lucy ran to the changing room and changed. She wanted to avoid Angela, which worked because as she was leaving, she walked in.
Once Lucy got home, she started to cry. All she could think about is how she never told her that she was sick. She would have been there for her. She was taking this way harder then she expected and knew she had to tell someone eventually but wanted to grief without someone hounding on her about information.
The next day, she was still not really talking to anyone. Everyone at work kept on asking if she was okay. She was getting real tired of being asked this. She decided the next time someone asked her that question, she was going to scream.
It was lunch and everyone but Lucy was talking. She just wanted to enjoy her food in peace but she did not get what she wanted.
"Lucy. Are you sure you are okay? You have not been acting like yourself recently," Angela said.
"NO. I AM NOT FINE! How would you react if your best friend died from stage three breast cancer. And you had to find this out from her mother after she died?" Lucy said.
No one had words. How do you respond to that? Why is she at work and not with the family?
"I am so sorry Lucy. Which friend passed away if you do not mind me asking?" Nyla asked.
"Rachel. Apparently she got diagnosed after she arrived to NYC. If she would have told me, I would have visited her. I never even got to say goodbye to her," Lucy said while starting to cry.
Tim got up and gave her a hug. He nodded to Angela to call Grey and tell him that him and Lucy are going home. After Lucy got back to her apartment, Tim made sure she ate something and made her her favorite tea. They were relaxing on the couch when Lucy's phone rang.
"Hello this is Lucy," she answered.
"Hey Lucy. It's Jessica again. I wanted to tell you that we are having a funeral for her on Thursday and would love to meet you here. You can bring someone with you if you would like," she said.
"Thank you. I will be there. I just have to make sure I have a flight there and back. I also have to tell my boss that I will not be at work," Lucy said before hanging up.
She went back to the couch and called Grey to get the three days off. One for the flight there, one for the funeral, and one for the flight back. He granted it without asking questions because she very rarely calls out.
"Do you need me to come with you? I do not want you to be by yourself," Tim said.
"If you do not mind. I was actually going to ask you if you could," she said.
Tim called Grey to let him know that he was not going to be there either. They both went to the funeral and Tim comforted her the whole time. It took a little bit of time for Lucy to deal with the death but Tim was by her side everyday. Lucy spent all her free time advocating for treatment and research for breast cancer in the name of Rachel. Everyone at the station participated in the 5K marathon against breast cancer.
