She introduced herself.
Sierra O'Brien, sixteen and former cheerleader for her school.
I stare at her, awestruck.
Not because she was a girl, but because she didn't look at me the way others did; like I was a kicked puppy.
"Okayyyy....so this is where you introduce yourself" she says, a little awkwardly.
I snap out of my momentary daze.
"Oh um.."
whats my name?
"I'm Kenneth."
She extends a friendly hand, " Nice to meet you Kenneth."
I shake her hand a little awkwardly. Why? Because I'm an awkward person.
She looks around my room so I take the chance to fully observe her.
She had a long, thin face with big brown eyes and chocolate hair to match.Her skin was as white as a sheet. Her body was hidden under a huge sweater but I could tell that she was weak and frail. She had small bags under her eyes and her mouth was set in a frown. A fine dusting of freckles covered her cheeks and nose.
She was almost beautiful.
"Did you just check me out?"
Busted.
"Er..what? Who? me? Nooooo" I stammered.
She looked at me knowingly and laughed. A loud, boisterous laugh. The kind that infects everyone around you.
I felt a blush creeping up my neck.
"Relax. I was just kidding. But you were looking at me"
I frowned, "No I wasn't....I was just...curious."
"About what?"
"Why are you talking to me?"
She looks at me,a little confused, "Do you want me to not talk to you?"
"No. I mean...why did you feel like talking to me? Did someone put you up to this? Cus if they did...you should know that I'm possibly the most hopeless person in this entire hospital so if you're one of those happy-go-lucky doers who want to live, you should stay away from me"
"Oh..so you're one those people..", she says as she stares at me thoughtfully.
"What people?"
"You know the ones who use dark humor as a coping mechanism....and have an extremely unhealthy obsession with dying? Because they think there is no hope, no room for survival so they hang around preaching death like moody old men with pot bellies?", she lowered her voice at 'moody old men' and imitated an old man.
Her accuracy made me want to laugh.
"I don't usually get along well with people....so fair warning, you don't want to get to know me and its best you stay away", I didn't mean to sound so cold but it came naturally after years of practiced sarcasm.
"Okay", she says with a straight face.
After a few minutes of silence she says, "So how does one get along with you?"
I sigh, "Were you listening to a word I was said? Or do you not understand the phrase 'stay away'...I just told you I'm a bad influence"
"Oh come on, nobody can be that bad"
"Oh really? And what makes you think that I could be any good?"
"Well first off, if you wanted me gone you would've chased me out already and second, you seem to be very approachable, despite the grumpiness"
I stare at her again.
"Oh and one thing you should know about me, I'm very persistent so if you think you're sarcasm and cold tone is going to keep me away from you, boy you are so wrong."
"Persistent, talkative and way too cheery for me to deal with" I groan.
"Hey, I was a cheerleader. What do you expect?"
I close my eyes and groan a little louder.
"You sound like a hibernating bear, you know when they-"
"I know what hibernation means!"
I open my eyes and look at her. She stares back.
People aren't usually drawn to me and neither am I to them, but something about the way Sierra was unaffected by my negativity made me want to talk to her.
So I gave into her stare and sighed.
"Fine. We can be friends. Or whatever the hell you want to call it"
She grinned and exploded into chatter.
So we talked all day. About our lives before cancer, our families, travel experiences and TV shows.The conversation shifted between deep thoughts and light humored topics.
We talked so much that I forgot to be sarcastic; forgot that I was dying. For a moment everything was alright as we laughed uncontrollably.
When a nurse came in to take Sierra back to her room, she looked back at me and smiled, "Well, it was nice meeting you. I'll see you around."
She waved goodbye and as I watched her leave, I felt a strange warmth.
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The Smile
Short Story~~They saw. They spoke. She smiled.~~ One moment is all it takes.....to change a life forever.