55 Days with Luke Hemmings

Day 39

As he started walking to his room, the landline started to ring.

"Blaze, will you get that?" He called from his room, and she laughed.

"What am I, your personal secretary?" She scoffed, pushing herself up off the couch and grabbing the phone. A woman's squeaky voice greeted her immediately.

"Hi, this is Kim from Saint Vincent's, and I was just calling to confirm Lucas' appointment tomorrow at 5:00?" She said, and Blaze paused.

Saint Vincent's? Why would they call for Luke?

"Uh, yeah. Yeah, tomorrow. That's perfect." She said. After she hung up, Blaze tried to control her thoughts. It could just be a routine checkup. She walked upstairs and opened Luke's door.

As she walked in, he pulled a shirt over his head. "Hold on, babe. I'm almost ready."

"What are you doing at Saint Vincent's tomorrow?" She asked, and he froze. "I mean, it's just a checkup, right?" She asked, and he sighed.

"Blaze..." He said, and she felt her heart stop.

"Luke, what's going on?"

"Blaze, I have cancer. I was going to tell you sooner but we've just been having such a great time and I didn't want to ruin it and to be quite honest, I didn't think you were going to stick around long enough for me to tell you." He rambled, and she stares at him.

"Cancer?" She asked, and he nodded, not meeting her gaze. She sat down on his bed, staring at the floor. After a few minutes, he sat next to her. It seems like they sat there for days in silence, maybe it was hours, or maybe even minutes.

"Blaze, please say something." He begged.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked, her voice flat and her eyes unmoving from the cluttered floor.

"I don't know." He said, grabbing her hand. She didn't squeeze his hand back like she usually did. She didn't even move.

"What kind?" She finally asked, and he rubbed her hands as he spoke.

"Lymphocytic Leukemia, stage four."

"Oh my God." She sobbed, finally breaking, and he silently cried with her. The large sobs racked her body and the silent tears streamed down his face. For hours he held her whilst she cried, until she finally tired herself out and fell asleep. He unwrapped himself from her body, walking down the stairs. He walked into the kitchen, meeting his mother.

"Is everything okay? I heard Blaze crying." She said, and Luke rummaged through the fridge.

"I told her." He sighed, and his mother looked at him.

"Finally?" She asked, and he nodded.

"She took it better than expected. Well, she didn't leave, or scream at me, so I took that as a good sign." He said, and she nodded.

"I'm glad you finally told her." She said.

"Why did this happen to me?" He asked, his walls crumbling and the tears rolling down his face. She hugged him tightly as he cried, the tears landing on top of her head.

"Oh, honey. The worst things happen to the best people." She said, and he shook his head and wiped his tears away. He smiled weakly at her, before trudging back up the stairs. He laid back down on the bed, pulling Blaze close to his body.

"Can I go with you tomorrow?" She asked, startling him.

"Yeah." He breathed. "Yeah of course."

That was the day she learned Luke Hemmings was dying.