Wild Flowers

Chapter 8

Two weeks pass with no apology from Chelsea and we enter into mid October. Its 7:49 in the morning on a chilly Thursday morning when I walk out of the bathroom carrying some damp towels from my shower. I'm wearing burgundy leggings, a tight grey sweater dress and tall, brown leather, lace-up boots. And there,waiting for me on the landing is Adam. He's bent on one knee holding a Haribo ring up to me. "Ashleigh Clarkson, would you do me the honor of becoming my girlfriend?" he asks his large chocolate eyes staring up at me. I gasp and cover my mouth with my hand with fake tears in my eyes.

"I will!" I say and leap into his arms. He spins me around and puts me on the ground. Both of us laugh as he puts the candy ring on my finger. 

Josh eyes our linked arms as we step out of the house, getting on the bus. Adam begins to pull me towards where he usually sits but I stop him. "I'll sit in my usual spot, Adam." I say.

"I'm not leaving my girlfriend on her own to go sit with my friends." he says. I punch him jokingly in the shoulder.

"Go sit with Josh, there's plenty of time to sit with me, and I honestly don't mind." I say and nod towards Josh. Adam squeezes my hand before going and sitting with Josh.

I don't have either of my first two lessons with Ember, but I'm excited to tell her the news and see her when break rolls around. On the way to the cafeteria Taylor, Katie and Jenna spot me and we walk together. Taylor notices the ring on my finger. "Oh My God!" She squeals and holds my hand up. "Explain!" She says and jabbing me in the ribs. I laugh.

"Oh you know, I'm just dating the extremely handsome Adam Johnson." I say nonchalantly and flick my hair over my shoulder, before bursting out in giggles. The girls all congratulate me and make cute comments. We sit down on our usual table, and I watch as Lily watches Adam with adoration as he enters the cafeteria. He walks up to their table and then turns away, heading over to me. Lily and Chelsea stare at him in outrage, whilst Tyler and Josh look at each other before looking back at Adam. He takes a seat next to me, and I smile without intending to, just happy to see him. He grabs my hand and places them on the table. 

I look over to Katie "I wonder where Ember is, have any of you seen her today?" They all shake their heads. Strange. I text her asking where she is. However, she doesn't show in art next either or at lunch. I text her again asking if she's okay because she's skipped school. Adam squeezes my hand.

"Don't worry Ash, I'm sure she's fine," he says and smiles reassuringly at me. After cheer practice I go home and ring her. No answer. I try again. No answer. The next day she doesn't come to school either. I text and ring her with no answer. After school I head to her house. Mrs Williams answers the door.

"Hello Ashleigh." She says and smiles, but it doesn't quite reach her eyes.

"Hey Mrs Williams, is Ember home?" I ask.

"She's upstairs, go on up." She says and I step in to the massive house. I bolt it up the stairs. I knock on Ember's door but I don't get a reply. I open it slowly and walk in. It's a mess. Drawers lie upside down on the floor, their contents scattered across the floor. The back of her door looks like its been stabbed multiple times and Ember lies staring blankly at the ceiling on her bed, surrounded by a sea of tissues.

"Ember?" I ask and her red puffy eyes look over at me. She reaches for her something on her bedside table and throws it at me. I catch the book and look at the cover. Its 'Scorch Trials' by James Dashner. A few weeks ago, at Ember's insistence, I had read the whole Maze Runner series. I look at her quizzically.

"I'm past the gone." she states simply. I immediately understand what has happened. If you haven't read the book, I will explain this simply. A disease called 'The Flare' is extremely deadly, and once contracted, there is no cure. When you are 'past the gone' it means you are past the point of no return, the disease will kill you.

I slowly make my way across the bomb site and sit next to her on the bed. She sits up. "What happened yesterday?" I ask but I already know the answer. Her eyes tear up as she begins to speak.

"I went to the hospital to have my cancer scan. It came back positive." She says and great, heaving sobs pour out of her. I pull her into a hug while she cries, holding her for a while.

"It's pancreatic Cancer, and I've had it before." She sniffles. "It was a miracle I survived last time, just 4% survive. I won't survive again." She cries.

"You can't be sure," I say but even I know that her chance of survival is ridiculously low. All we can do is hold onto each other and hope. The cancer will eat away at her, killing her slowly, and reduce the positivity in her life. Tears threaten to spill from my own eyes as the thought of losing Ember overwhelms me.