Saving Hope

Chapter 14

Sorry for the wait you guys! I'll try to update sooner. This chapter goes out my best friend!  I know you've been begging me to update so here it is!

        1 Week Later

        Ashley’s funeral was today and nobody was really handling it well. The whole resort fell apart when everyone heard the news of her passing. She was the person who brightened everyone’s day and put a smile on everybody’s face. They truly lost a wonderful person and friend when she died.

        Nayla was trying so hard not to break down as she was getting ready for the funeral in her room. It was hard for her to be alone in the room knowing that Ashley wasn’t going to come walking through the door screaming her name. No one was going to bring her ice cream or rub coco butter on her stretch marks for her. She really felt alone for the first time since she got there months ago. Her best friend was gone and she didn’t know what to do.

        Looking in the mirror she sighed. Her huge stomach just could not be contained in the simple black dress she was wearing. Deciding that there was nothing she could do about it, she put her black flats on and waited for Devon to come for her. While she waited she went on Ashley’s side of the room to finish packing her stuff like her mom asked her to. There was a big box on her bed where she placed the different picture frames Ashley had all scattered on both of her night stands. Nayla was putting things in the box as fast as she could when she came across a picture they took a few days before she gave birth. The girls had their stomachs exposed, paint was everywhere and they both had huge grins on their faces.

        *Flashback*

        “Come on Nayla I’m telling you that this is gonna be fun” Ashley laughed while holding a box in her hand.

        Ashley’s mom had sent her a pregnancy stomach casting kit and she really wanted to try it. There was more than enough for her and Nayla to do one, so she spent half the morning convincing Nayla to do it with her. It took hours because to get it just right but the girls had so much fun even if they were messing it up. After the castings were done and completely dry Ashley suggested they use some paint to add color to them. That’s when things really hit the fan. Paint started flying everywhere and before they knew it both of them were covered in paint. Nayla took the opportunity to take pictures of them with her digital camera. A couple of days later she gave Ashley a framed picture of them from that day as a surprise gift for her…

*End of Flashback*

        Nayla held that picture and cried to herself. She was crying so much she didn’t know she had fallen onto Ashley’s bed. If she was like this before the funeral there was no telling how she was going to react when she was actually there. What made her so sad was not only the fact that her best friend died but she knew that in just a few months she would succumb to the same fate. Just thinking about it made tears come even faster. Caught up in her own misery, she hadn’t noticed that Devon let himself in and was standing in front of her.

        “Baby, what are you doing?” he asked concerned.

        “I…I…I can’t go Devon” she cried.

        “Go where Nayla?” he asked confused this time.

        “To Ashley’s funeral, I just can’t go”

        “Sweetie-“

        “No, you don’t understand, that’s going to be me soon and I can’t take it!” she screamed.

        He sat on the bed and wrapped his arms around her. He pulled her close and rubbed her back as she cried into his chest.

        “Nayla, babe you said it yourself that you have the HIV under control. You’re taking your meds and the doctor said that everything is looking okay” he said reassuringly.