My soldier in Neverland (Jack Barakat)

Chapter 29

Brook

I see the dark shade under my eyes that match the very pale cheeks. I hear is a hitch in Jacks snoring, I glance over at the big stiff leather chair that he is slung in, he has the same circles but they are completely around his eyes. He has only slept half an hour but he will wake up when the nurse comes in to change my iv. Returning to the metal tray I stare at my awkward features, the only feature that I ever like about my face was how rosy my cheeks would be all the time, but those days have come and gone. Nancy, my nurse, walks in with a clear bag.

"Why did you not eat, honey?" Kelly is the only nurse that makes you happy, the kids mostly like her because of her percings and the small Mohawk that sits stiff on her head, but I like her for all of her stories, sure most are made up but you like to think they have happened to someone out there.

"I can't tell if I am hungry, and if I am I'm sure it will come back up." I hold my stomach with my forearms.

"You need to eat." Jack still has his eyes shut but he adjusts his body upward.

"No don't tell her that or she won't do it." Kelly sits on my bed and does that thing that moms do to check children's temp.

"Why not just check it the normal way?" I ask her.

"Because you are like my daughter, I've been taking care of you since you were 13." It's very true that Kelly thinks of me like that, in fact when I found out about the cancer coming back she cried over the phone.

"I don't want the food, it's gross." I give her the metal tray with the untouched food.

"I'll get you something from the nurses station, diva." That is my nickname to her.

"You don't have to eat it every day." I whisper under my breath.

"Brook, is it okay if my sister and brother come to meet you tonight?" Jack has a glow on his face.

"Are you crazy?" I say as if he was seriously joking.

"What you don't want to meet them?" Jack sounds a little hurt.

"Jack I am bed ridden, I look like hell and I am sure your sister will look like a flipping model." I can't really put very much emphasis on my explanation because of my state of fatigue.

"They really want to meet you. Come on." He comes over and snuggles up to me. "Look at me." I lay on my side so I can face him and so I don't fall off of the twin sized mattress. "My sister knows you are in the hospital, they know that you probably won't look your best, but they really want to meet you." He lifts my chin up and kisses my Vaseline coated lips. "Plus they have already met Midnight." He reveals a toothy smile that I have been missing since I was put in this prison like bed.

"Fine."

Jack

A sound from the other side of the hospital door steals my attention from the tv. I walk fast so they don't knock again. I see my sisters giggling face wash away as I shut the door behind me.

"She really isn't feeling good." I dampen her mood. "She also wasn't up for this, but I pushed it." I explain.

"Oh brother you look horrible!" Her eyes search my face with wobbly eyes.

"Yeah not much sleep. She is sleeping right now though so we can wait till she wakes. And wait for Joe." I open the door slowly. May seems shocked at the tiny frame under the blankets.

"So what is exactly wrong?" She scoots another chair up to me.

"The doctors say that she has a virus that won't allow anything to stay in her stomach so they have been giving her stuff through an I've. She just recently, like a half hour ago, got a sever migraine so they put her on pain mess that made her fall asleep." She didn't really know that it was this bad, I just wanted her to come see Brook.

"Oh my god Jack, you never said anything about a virus! What does this mean for her chemo?" She keeps looking at Brook'a limp hand that is punctured by an iv.

"We talked to her chemo doc and she said that the mess won't fight off the cancer cells as long as she is sick." My voice catches in my throat and my sister hears if, obviously.

"Oh no!" She puts her hand up to her mouth.

Me and May watch tv until her phone vibrates.

"It's Joe, he needs help getting to her room." She gets up and shuts the door quietly behind her.

"Why didn't you introduce me?" I hear from the bed, I figured she woke up.

"I will when she comes back. She is really worried for you." I explain.

"I don't like it when people worry about me, or for me." She looks up at the ceiling

"But you need them, you need that kind of affection and people who care about you." I get closer and hold her hand.

"Jack I haven't had all this many people in my life who care."

"Exactly, you need it more now than ever." I explain hoping to get an emotion.

"Why, because I'm going to die?" I see her tiny shoulder go up then down. The anger runs its course through put my body but I don't throw a fit. I have heard her say those four words so many times through out the week, I've learned to not throw fits of anger I just keep it in now.

My sister and brother walk in a few moments later. Joes face is a reflection of May's when she first walked in.

"Hi." May waves a little then she pushes me from my seat and takes the place of my hand. "How are you?" She asks now worried.

"My headache is gone now. How are you, May." I notice how comfortable she is when it is just us, but she is also very polite even when she is in a groggy state.

"We'll you shouldn't worry about me. I am fine though. This is my brother Joe by the way." Joe is in the corner, I remember that has never liked hospitals or death or anything that? relates.

Brook

Jacks siblings stay for over two hours and they only leave because Kelly came in and told them she had to change my Iv bag, Joe I'm guessing doesn't like the medical stuff. That was not as scary as I thought it wouldn't be as fun but May made me feel like I was home and not stuck in this ridiculous hospital.