SPINE [Completed]

CHAPTER 10

Everything was finally set. The tests have all been confirmed and they had prepped the room for the surgery. "Ready JT?" Taylor smiled. She was twirling in circles in her hospital gown. "T, just lay down. You're going to need the energy after." James cracked a smile. "And when I'm better, we're playing basketball and soccer again. Our usual bet. You beat me in basketball, I buy you dinner. I beat you in soccer, you buy me dinner." Taylor nodded and jumped into her hospital bed. Unlike her, James was calmly resting in his bed with a cap on his head and a facemask. Her energy vibed throughout the entire room and he could feel a hint of hope and happiness.

The doctors came in to brief the two on exactly what is about to happen. "The procedure is actually pretty simple. Taylor goes to sleep for a bit and we extract the bone marrow and then we transfer it into you. Then, we wait to see if your body receives the stem cells and starts to recover your immune system and your bone marrow. As for Taylor, she should be good to go within a week or so. We expect both of you to be perfectly fine after the procedure." James's mother nodded and held James's hand tightly. Taylor's father went over to Taylor and gave her a kiss. "We normally don't do this transplant in the same room, but James's condition is not where we wanted it to be on the day of the procedure. So they have to be in the same room so the process is faster and more efficient. We don't think it'll be a problem and we'll monitor everything. Are you guys ready?" James looked at Taylor. "Taylor...thank you. For everything. I love you." Taylor smiled. "Of course, you'd do the same for me anyways. I'll just take a quick little nap and then you can have my bone marrow. I'll literally be in your bones." James rolled his eyes. Everyone laughed but the mood quickly subsided. "We're headed to the room now. Mrs. Turner and Mr. Brookes, you may wait outside in the waiting room. They'll be out in no less than two hours."

While they were being wheeled into the room, Taylor and James just stared at each other. They felt at ease knowing it would be them going through this together and not alone. All of the thoughts that had haunted James started to seep out into the air and turn into nothing. Taylor kept her smile all throughout. She was not going to be taken aback by the situation. Not a word was spoken between the two. Just staring. Taylor covered her face and giggled. She always did that when James purposely stared for too long. She peeked one eye between her fingers and winked. She giggled more. The doctors must've thought they were little kids.

"We are about to put the anesthetics into your bloodstream. You'll both fall asleep and wake up pretty out of it. It's all normal. Happens to everyone." They both nodded. Within an instant, they both drifted to sleep. Dreams are such unique concepts. They happen almost every single day and yet, explaining them are almost impossible. The human subconscious is said to project images of one's worries, hopes, and aspirations and the reason why dreams are so confusing is because they are thoughts that never surfaced.

Roses. Roses and the rain. Roses, the rain, the end. The unexpected twist. Roses. The rain. The end. The unexpected curtain call. Roses...

He heard a flurry of loud noises and a series of beeps. A one second delay. Beep. Another second. Beep. And another. More yelling. A shock wave of emotions. Followed by the steady beeps. His eyes finally peeled open. He scanned the room. Doctors were nowhere to be found by his side. Every time he blinked, his vision went blurry. It was hard for him to fixate his gaze on anything. Mumbling ensued. It grew louder and louder. Finally, he could make out what the mumbling was. "Try it again!" A thud followed. "Again!" Another thud. He turned his head to the noises. An arm dangling by the table. Lifeless. "How the fuck do you let this happen? How did this even go wrong? Again!" Another thud. More yelling. He lifted his head. It took all the strength in his body to stay upright for even a few seconds. Her eyes were closed. The beeps only came from his monitor. "T - T...Taylor..."

He felt life drift slowly out of his fingertips. Out from his skull. Just departing. She laid there. Motionless. Lips curved for a smile. And now a white blanket over her. "No...you can't die. No. No. What the fuck did you do wrong?"His entire body shook as his hairs rose to become spikes. His heart cracked.The shrapnels shredded his insides. "Her heart gave out. We don't know why. Her immune system just failed. We don't know why." He mustered the strength to getup from the bed. He fell over by her side. "Taylor please. This isn't funny.Please. Please wake up...Taylor please. Stop." He cried uncontrollably. Cries muffled his speech. At that very moment, nothing made sense. Absolutely nothing. His body shook violently. He gathered his hands near his face. He gripped the sides of his head tightly and tried to rip off the skin. Rage followed by tears. Tears followed by confusion. A vicious cycle. And then. No more tears. Just absolute darkness.

The kind of darkness found in the depths of the seas. The kind of darkness found only in those without purpose. "James. We need you to get back on the bed. We need to put you on medication right away. I am so...I am so sorry." He looked at her. "Let me see her face. Just once." The doctors unveiled the white blanket. There she was. Roses. The unexpected curtain call. The end. The rain.