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Chapter 19

(WARNING: SAD CHAPTER!! Remember at brunch when Quinn said she'd keep Milly's incident with Donovan a secret if she kept her secret from Emily until Quinn could tell her herself? If not, that was a refresher)

~Millicent~

I woke up in an empty bed wearing nothing but Donovan's shirt from last night. And I mean nothing. I got up from bed and put on underwear and pajama pants and brushed my teeth before putting on my glasses. It felt weird waking up alone. Ever since I got back together with Donovan, he had been sleeping over here with me. He had been wearing the clothes I had kept, but I knew he would eventually have to go back.

I walked into the kitchen to see Quinn and Emily talking on the couch. Quinn looked upset and a little scared. Emily looked worried. I knew what was going on... And I knew Emily wouldn't take it well.

"Milly come over here with us," Quinn said to me.

"I don't think I want to be here for this."

"Please? For me?"

"Fine, but I'm not going to say anything about it."

I went over to them and sat on the couch at the very edge, making sure not to be close when she told Emily.

"What is it, Quinn?" Em asked.

Quinn ran a hand through her newly-cut hair. "I wanted to tell you before this relationship went on any further."

"Quinn, you're kind of scaring me."

"I'm sick, Em."

"I know. You were puking yesterday. You told me it was just the bright lights that were making you nauseous."

"Not necessarily."

"Then what's the matter?"

"Jesus, um, I have a  subarachnoid hemorrhage."

"What the hell is that?"

"It's, uh, bleeding within the subarachnoid space."

"Where's that?" she whispered.

"The space between the brain and the tissue covering the brain."

"That sounds bad."

"It is. It's, um, rare, but critical. Hereditary. My sister died from hers."

"Fucking hell," Emily mumbled. "When did you find out about it?"

"A couple of days before I met you. I've been taking medication, but I'm going to need surgery soon if it worsens."

"This is a lot, Q."

"I know."

"Are you going to be okay?"

"Probably not. That's why I'm telling you." Quinn's eyes began watering and she wiped them.

They stayed silent for a while and I felt incredibly awkward. I had gone through this before with Quinn, but I had no idea why she wanted me to sit with her while she told Emily.

"I have to go to work now. I need some time to process all of this, Quinn. I hope that's okay."

"I understand, Em."