Short Stories

Winning The Battle

AN: So this is my story for language arts, the names are similar to those in my family and yes, one of my sister's did die from cancer but this is NOT her story.

AN #2: So this used to be an individual story, however I decided to combine it with my short stories

Winning the Battle

            It had been a year since Carly had entered the hospital with lung cancer. She started chemo a month after that and had worn a bandana on her head all the time after that. Today was my thirteenth birthday and we were in the hospital visiting her. Over the past few weeks, her condition had worsened and the amount of chemo treatment they were giving her had gone up. My family that wasn’t in the hospital sat around her bed and said hello, I’m from a big family, there’s eight of us in total. Me, Carly, Marcus, Nathaniel, Breanna, Miranda, and mom and dad. It was only me and Nathaniel at home now as all of my siblings had graduated high school.

            We sat around her bed with plain, distant faces. I was studying her from where I sat, she had her eyes closed and was smiling the toothy grin she had since she was my age or younger. I don’t even know because when she was thirteen I was just an infant, so she was twenty-six now. I wondered why she was smiling, what could she possibly see that was so good in this?

            “Carly, why are you so happy right now? Wouldn’t you be sad that you’re in a hospital with cancer?” I asked her.

              “I’m not happy here on Earth right now. I’m happy because I know that if I don’t make this, I’m going home to be with my heavenly Father. This home on Earth has been my temporal home, it was only here while my soul is encased in this earth-bound body, and when I die, I’ll be with Him where there is no sickness and there isn’t anything called cancer.”

            I was crying now, “Carly, don’t say that, of course you’ll make it through. You’re one of the strongest, happiest  people I know.”

              “Being happy doesn’t mean I’ll make it through this.” She looked at her machines. “In fact, I could be gone anyday now according to these. So,” she said, “is there anything you want me to know?” I and my family left the room to give each of us our privacy with her. When it was my turn to talk to her, I was the last to go in. I shut the door softly with a click and walked up and hugged her.

              “Kylie, don’t be afraid, don’t cry for me, I’ll be in a better place soon enough.” She was holding my hand in hers. “Now, I want you to remember that you are the strongest person I know. You were the one to speak up when the rest of them were silent. Remember yourself and know that you will never lose a battle that you fight. If you don’t fight at all and just give up, that’s the true lost battle. I love you Kylie.” She closed her eyes and her hand went limp. She had won her battle.