completed: 08/27/18
-shortlisted for Fiction awards-
May Springer enters her Senior year of high school with high hopes for her future, maybe she'll make some friends this year. Maybe she'll get higher than a -A on a test, and maybe just maybe she c...
A/N: a little fun with Tennis in this chapter, hope you like it (: Question: what sports do you play?—>
Chapter eighteen: Summer and a bummer //un-edited//
"See ya tomorrow at the gym! Don't forget!" Summer yelled as she left my room and headed towards the elevator.
She had a tennis tournament she had to get to and I promised I would come and watch once I got out of here.
I took off my beanie and tossed it on my head as another headache pounded its way into my brain. I've been having episodes like these for a while and as my stomach churned I knew that whatever ice cream I had digested would soon be coming up.
Rushing to the bathroom I flipped the toilet seat up and emptied the contents of my stomach into the porcelain bowl in a hurry. Throwing up wasn't fun, especially when you've been holding it in all day in worry that your friends would judge you.
My sweatshirt was making me sweat and I wiped my mouth with the nearest towel and took the extra layers off traveling my sports bra and pale skin.
Not caring what proper would think I walked through my room and tried to calm the racing of my heart as fast as I could.
Betty walked in and gave me a weak smile as I later my hands over the top of my head as she strolled in. Placing her hot neon pink cart next to my bed I sat down along side it.
Holding out my arm I gave up as she hooked me up to the radioactive therapy that would drain me of my energy very soon.
"Honey how are you feeling?" She asked as she sat down in the couch, observing my behavior.
I shook my head, frustrated. "I just want this to go away, why me? Why during my senior year out of all years?"
"It happens, you'll get through this." She said, attempting to ease my nerves.
"But what happens if I don't? I only have a 27 percent chance of survival Betty! You don't understand!" I yelled, all the won't up stress I've been keeping in coming out into the open.
"Honey I do understand."
"No you don't! Have you ever had cancer?!" I yelled, feeling bad for landing out at Betty who has done nothing but help me.
"I had breast cancer and I persevered, and so can you."
I went still, she had cancer also?
"We'll get through this together May, trust me we will."
I nodded, not knowing what to say at this point. She took my hand and squeezed it twice before getting up and wheeling her cart out and into the hallway where she left me to grieve.
I saw another person walked in and it was the doctor who had told me I had Adult Acute Myeloid Leukemia in the first place. He smiled at me and grabbed the clipboard at the end of the bed.
Flipping through the pages he sighed before looking up at me. "May, we are going to be running some tests soon to see how the cancer is reacting to the chemo, Okay?"
I nodded and he continued. "How have you been feeling?"
I looked anywhere but him, embarrassed to tell him I have been feeling exhausted, embarrassed to tell him that even when I eat healthy and take everything slow I throw up every morning.
He must have sensed what I was thinking and he stepped up next to me, setting the notes on the nightstand. "I would recommend you stop going to school."
What a bummer.
As much as I wanted to keep going to school I knew he was right, I couldn't keep harming myself even farther if I wanted to beat this.
"Alright."
He nodded and walked away leaving me alone with my thoughts and I decided to call Emma, god knows I needed some positivity right now.
It rang three times before she picked up.
"Are you Okay!? Is everything alright?" She answered right away, Sorry laced in her tone.
I chuckled. "Everything's fine Emma, but I wanted to ask you something."
"Shoot, anything at all. I'm at your beck and call."
I looked at the bag next to me that was hooked up in the I.V and then looked at the clock. "Would you be able to bring me to Summer's match and watch it with me in an hour?"
I could tell, even over the phone that the positive energy she holds was bursting at the seems. "Of course! I'll meet you at the entrance!"
I smiled, Emma had the highest level of energy anyone could ever posses, and it was comical to watch and be apart of—but I loved every minute of it.
It took about an hour before Betty came back in and unhooked my arm, throwing a bad aid over the been in my elbow and giving me the all go to get over to the tennis courts and watch Summer play.
The car ride was full of singing to random songs on the radio and jamming out to the old songs Emma was a big fan of—Frank Sinatra and Journey being the two popular ones.
She was an old person trapped in a young girls body.
We made it to the tennis courts and since Emma drove a pick-up truck we grabbed an old blanket from the trunk and sat next to the wired fence that separated us and her.
I've never been to a tennis match so this should be fun. Emma and I grabbed our phones and texted Allison—the Tennis manager—and Summer that we were here.
They came running over and hugged us both before getting yelled at and jogged back towards the coach and line-up.
They announced the players starting at the single players first—Summer being number one singles and so and so forth.
They reached doubles and announced them before huddled up and chanting the panther chant and running out to their courts. The coaches shook hands and went to their respective sides.
Summer and her opponent warmed up by hitting to each other and then feeding each other volleys before getting down to it.
Summer twirled her racket—had no idea what that meant—than Summer took the three tennis balls and went to the end of the court and the opponent did the same.
Swinging her racket in the air she hit the ball right on the 't' maker of the opposite side and the girl ran over and hit the ball, the ball flying back and Summer retrieving it.
They hit back and forth unlit the other girl hit it into the blue are of the court and Summer yelled out. Emma clapped and I followed along as Summer took another ball and yelled. "15-Love!"
This was fun to watch, I now understand why Allison was the Tennis manager and why Emma never seemed to miss a match.
Who knew that I—out of all people—would find Tennis entertaining.
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