24 Hours

Prologue

7:00 a.m.

Jaelyn's POV

Here I am again. Sitting in an examination room, waiting for the doctor to come back with the test results. Same hospital. Same doctors. Same tests. Same problem. I've spent so much time here that's it's practically a second home to me.

Everything here is so familiar, I could find my way around with my eyes closed.
I take in the scent of the chemicals they use to clean everything. I hate it. I always have.

My mother sits in a chair next to me, holding my hand and telling me it will be okay.
I smile and nod even though she's lying. Everyone always says it's okay, but it's not. I wish they would stop lying to me about it.

Soon the door opens and the doctor enters the room. She takes a seat and smiles at me.

"So the results are in an-" I cut her off. "How bad is it this time," I ask. Her smile disappears and her face becomes sad. She's in her late twenties, but the expression she wears now makes her seem older.

"It was getting better, but you had a relapse. It's worse than ever and I'm afraid-" I cut her off again. "How bad is it," I ask again. "Jaelyn, our best guess is that you have about 24 hours," she says. "To live," I ask and she nods slowly.

My mother covers her mouth with her free hand and her eyes are glassy. "I'm sorry, Jaelyn. We've done everything we can," the doctor says," Try to make the best of your last day."