CHAPTER 15
UNDER
"Let's just go over some precautions before we get started," Dr. Cameron says from across the room. I gently nod and sigh.
"Besides the fact that I need to stay calm, I don't think there'll be any issues. We've already gone over the precautions."
Dr. Cameron smiles.
"We're going to get you hooked up in a few minutes."
"About how long do you think it'll take?" I ask.
Dr. Cameron shrugs.
"Anywhere between an hour and two hours. It all depends on how your body reacts to the transplantation and how you're feeling throughout the procedure."
"Will I be awake the entire time?"
"Yes. Unless you begin showing signs of distress or anxiety, we will inject you with sedatives."
I nod and lean back against the pillow. Dr. Cameron exits the hospital room and I sigh. I don't let my mind wander and keep my gaze focused on the ceiling. It's only been about a minute before a nurse enters the room with a large machine and pushes it beside the bed while another nurse wheels in a tray with several bags of liquid, many of which contain blood.
"How's Dylan doing?" I ask.
The nurse smiles as he begins hooking up the wires and tubes into my arm.
"He's doing fine. The extraction was a success and he's recovering."
"Were there any complications?" I ask quietly.
The nurse hangs one of the bags of blood on a hook attached to a metal pole and pokes the end of the bag with a needle that connects to the tubes connected to my arm.
"Everything went according to plan, Ms. Caverly," he says calmly. He didn't really answer my question, but it assuages me a little.
He slides a needle under my skin and I flinch.
"Just hold still, okay? I'm gonna turn on the machine now to get the blood flowing."
I nod.
"Okay."
The nurse flips on a switch at the back of the machine and a gentle motor starts up. The machine creates a low hum and it's kind of soothing.
"When this bag is empty, we'll hook up the next one," the nurse says with a smile.
I smile back and he leaves. The motor of the machine hums quietly in the background and I create a rhythm in my head. I tune out any background noise and try to think about happy things. If all goes well within the next few weeks, I'll be on the road to live a normal life. I smile to myself as that sinks in.
I'll be able to live a normal life!
No more worrying about how much time I have left to live. No more cynical views on life. No more thinking my life is as good as it's going to get. I'll be able to look forward to a future I didn't even know existed! But not only that, to actually be able to work for that future is a blessing to me. Most kids my age complain about the work they have to put in towards creating their life, but I never had to, because my life was never anything that would last. I never would have dreamed I'd be here, right now, going through a stem cell transplantation. In all honesty, I've already prepared myself for death, almost welcomed it. I imagined my parents might've done the same, though they'd never admit it.
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The Cycle
HorrorEverything in sixteen-year-old Laine Caverly's life isn't as dreadful as it seems. She's fatally ill, incredibly sociably awkward, and her parents question her status as a teenager. Still, she's normal. But once Laine's best friend is found dead in...