Veto Syndrome// m.c

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Steph got out from her bed, her head a nest of nappy curls. She looked around her four-walled hell, or as other people called it: her bedroom. It wasn't until the age of eight when she started calling it her hell, which was the year her life changed drastically. It was that year that she attended an annual doctor's appointment and it was discovered she had Common Variable Immune Deficiency, or also known as CVID. The disorder was exactly how the name sounded; she lacked an immune system. She could get sick from the simplest things and it was exhausting. But the thing that was even more exhausting than her constantly getting sick was her overbearing mother.

She appreciated and loved her mother to bits and pieces, she truly did. She especially appreciated that her mother dedicated the past ten years of her life to Steph and her disorder. But now that she was eighteen, she felt her mum could cease a little control and trust her with her own life a little more. Eighteen was just an age, but it was a liberating one. With the work of both Steph and her father, they were able to convince Nicola to begin focusing on her own needs. Of course Nicola was against the idea, Steph was her baby and even though they had managed to gain control over her CVID, it was still a risky life her daughter was living. But Steph and her father did not let that keep Nic, both sitting the mother down and explaining that Steph should be allowed to experience a life that was a little closer to comparing to one of a "normal" teenager. What exactly was a normal teenager? Steph was not sure, but all she wanted was to not be treated as if she belonged in a plastic bubble. She wanted to be able to be able to go out for dinner and not have her mother frantically lifting her elbow so that her bare skin did not come in contact with the germ infested restaurant table.

So her mother gave in. She began building her own separate life, getting a job at the local high school as a nurse. Her father still thought it would have been better if she had completely broken off from the "caring for a sick kid" environment, but it was a step away from caring for her sick kid; little steps.

It had only been a couple weeks since her mom had started the new job and "set her free," but already it was going good. Steph was trusted to go to the convenience store just down the street on her own. She was allowed to continue her morning runs around the neighborhood without her mum. And she was allowed to attend her doctor's appointments on her own...but she didn't ask for that freedom. Lately, her mum and dad had been forgetting about the appointments, leaving Steph alone. It hurt her to think that her parents really did have something much more important to focus on in their lives, but she would block out those darker thoughts to focus on the new responsibilities she was taking on. She was attending those appointments and impressing herself more and more each time with how bold she was growing. She could actually look the recently hired receptionist at the doctors office in the eyes! It was quite a big achievement for her.

The sound of the front door opening and closing took her from her thoughts. She walked towards the window that faced the driveway to see her mum getting into her car, most likely heading to the school.

School. She had switched from public school to being home schooled the day after she was diagnosed, so she couldn't really remember much from her school days. She could vaguely remember a mob of kids and the smell of glue and cheetos, but nothing else. Her eyes fell upon her laptop that laid upon her dark, wooden, desk. Her laptop was her school.

Many people wished they could have the chance to stay home for school, and Steph honestly loved it, but there were many times where it was not that great. Sometimes she did wish she could interact with other kids. 

Like the Clifturd kid...she had spent the past two days thinking of him. He was so kind. His smile was so genuine and his hands were so warm. She blushed every time she reminisced on those five minutes and thirty five seconds with him. She had tried subtly asking her mother if she knew of a black haired kid by the name 'Clifturd', which earned her odd looks from her mum.