Between Love and Loss: The Daughter I Made

Chapter 4: Through Sickness or Health

The words hung in the air like a terrible weight. “They’re giving me about a year.”

Kailiax stared at him, her chest tightening, her mind racing to process what she had just heard. It felt impossible—unreal. The man who had just talked about their future, who had laughed with her about kids and joked about naming their daughter Rivyn, was telling her that their future was slipping away.

“A year?” she echoed, her voice barely a whisper. Her hands trembled, her heart pounding in her chest as if it was trying to escape.

He nodded, his eyes downcast, too pained to look at her. “I’m sorry, Kailey. I should have told you sooner.”

Her body shook with the force of her emotions. “How could you?” she gasped, her voice breaking. “How could you just let me dream about a future we’ll never have?” Tears streamed down her face, and her words came out in sobs. “You let me believe we had time—time to build a life, to have everything.”

“I didn’t know how to tell you,” he said, his voice thick with guilt. “I wanted to protect you, to keep you happy for as long as I could.”

Kailiax shook her head, disbelief and anger coursing through her veins. “Protect me? You let me believe everything was fine while you knew—you knew it wasn’t!” She stepped away from him, wrapping her arms around herself as if trying to hold the pieces of her heart together. “How could you let me dream, only to take it all away?”

Her tears fell freely now, and he could do nothing but watch, his own eyes filling with unshed tears. He couldn’t look at her—couldn’t stand the sight of her crying, knowing that he was the reason for her pain. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, his voice barely audible.

But sorry wasn’t enough. Nothing was enough.


For the next few days, the house was filled with an aching silence. Kailiax couldn’t bring herself to speak to him, couldn’t even look at him without tears welling up in her eyes. Every time she saw him, it felt like she was watching him disappear before her very eyes, even though he was still there.

He tried everything to cheer her up—small gestures of love that once would have made her laugh. He brought her her favorite coffee in bed, left little notes around the house, and even made ridiculous attempts to distract her with jokes. One afternoon, she walked into the living room to find him dressed in a ridiculous combination of clothes, doing a silly dance to one of her favorite songs.
It was so absurd, so him, that her heart ached even more. She didn’t laugh. Instead, she cried harder, the sight of him trying so hard to make her happy only reminding her of what she was losing.

One evening, as she lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling, her mind swirling with grief, it hit her. She was losing time. The very thing she had been so afraid of—losing him—was slipping through her fingers, and she was letting it happen. She couldn’t change the fact that his time was limited, but she could change how they spent it.

Kailiax sat up, wiping her tears away. She couldn’t waste another moment in sorrow. She couldn’t let their last year together be filled with nothing but pain. He deserved better. They deserved better.

The next morning, she woke up with a new resolve. She walked into the kitchen, where he was making breakfast, and for the first time in days, she smiled—a real, heartfelt smile.

“We don’t have much time,” she said softly, her voice trembling but strong. “But let’s make the most of it.”

He looked up, surprised, and for a moment, she saw the spark return to his eyes. “Are you sure?”

She nodded, stepping closer. “We’ll make every moment count.”

From that day on, everything changed. They spent their days together, savoring each little moment as if it were a gift. Even as his health began to decline, they found joy in the smallest things.

When he grew too weak to walk, she pushed him to the park in a wheelchair. They would sit beneath the old oak tree, sharing quiet moments as they watched the world pass by. On days when he felt strong enough, they would go to their favorite restaurant, holding hands across the table as if nothing had changed.

One evening, when the sky was painted in shades of pink and orange, they drove out to a hill that overlooked the city. Kailiax spread a blanket on the grass, and they sat side by side, watching the sunset together. He leaned his head on her shoulder, his hand resting in hers, and in that quiet stillness, they found peace.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered after a long silence, his voice barely audible over the soft breeze. “For everything.”

Kailiax squeezed his hand, her heart aching but full of love. “Don’t be. We’re here now. That’s what matters.”

And in that moment, she realized the truth she had been avoiding: time was slipping away, but they still had now. And she would make the most of it.

As the months passed, his health continued to worsen. The strong, vibrant man she had loved for so long was fading, but even in the face of illness, he never stopped trying to make her smile. He would whisper jokes in her ear, kiss her on the forehead, and hold her hand whenever he could. And though his body grew weaker, their love remained strong—perhaps stronger than ever.

Every day was a gift, a precious moment that they cherished. They made their own memories, even in the hardest of times, knowing that the love they shared would carry them through whatever came next.