Mary and Halley (sequel to When Mary Met Halley)

nineteen

I held her hand as the needle pierced her skin and slid through the layers of flesh and muscle into the lump, not watching because I was already lightheaded. I'd had so many shots and needlework during my own stay I was pretty immune, but the actual sight of them being inserted didn't affect me well.

I watched her face instead, which was my privilege. She looked vulnerable above the papery gown, white with little blue flowers on it and inappropriately cheerful. 

She remained steadfast though, the numbing medication taking away the pain of the biopsy, her fingers cutting off my circulation as she kept completely still. A muscle twitched in her clenched jaw and I squeezed her hand with both of mine. A hair tickled my nose and I tried to quietly blow it away since I wasn't about to let go. 

"Just what we wanted to see, clear fluid," the doctor said as she examined the syringe, almost too loudly, startling us both a little. "Excellent. It's just a cyst; it might get painful at times but completely benign." She disposed of it in the little receptacle marked with a hazard symbol. 

"Oh my God," Halley said as relief slammed through me, taking my breath away. She tightened her grip even further, her eyes huge. "Really? You're sure?"

The woman smiled. "I'm sure. Most ob-gyns' favorite part of this work is the babies, no doubt, but this is mine. I'm a breast cancer survivor myself and it makes giving bad news that much worse, since I know what they're in for." She snapped off her gloves. "But saying the word 'benign' is the best part of my job, especially to someone so young. I'll let you get dressed and out of here and on with your lives, girls. Thank you again for the generous donation."

I tried to thank her in return but no words would come out. I was scared we were dreaming, that this couldn't be this easy. 

Halley turned to me as the door snicked shut and then we were hugging and laughing and I was crying and she tore the stupid disposable shirt off. "Pinch me," she said breathlessly, and I kissed her instead.

"I love you so much," I told her, wishing words were more adequate, knowing she knew though.

"I know," she said, grinning. "I love you too." She pulled her shirt over her head.

I waited until she got it on and took her hand, bringing the back of it to my lips. "You're, like, everything to me," I said, holding her face now, giddy with the reprieve we'd been miraculously handed. I had to make sure she really, really knew. 

She got it and put her own palms on my cheeks. "And I am the luckiest girl in the world because of it," she acknowledged, joining our lips. "And you are everything to me," she whispered. "Never doubt it for a second." She kissed me once more and slid off the table. "Now let's get the hell out of here."

We did.

A week went by in relative peace and then it was the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.

Halley had taken Shiloh, Hank, and Gwen with her to do the rest of the grocery shopping for the upcoming holiday, and Ruby was watching cartoons with Jasper in the living room while Leif made omelettes in the kitchen. 

The teens were shut away in their room playing video games. We had gone the day after the hate-fueled attack and filed a police report; because, as Char insisted, we couldn't let them just get away with it. The cop taking the report had been decent enough and while nothing had come of it, nothing ever came of being silent, either.

I was handing Leif the milk when I noticed the fingermarks on his neck that were no longer hidden by the worn-off concealer. I flicked him hard on the ear as he stood stirring the eggs in a pan.