With my arms crossed, leaned on the doorframe, I watched as Sam reunited with her mother. Mrs Daniels was a wonderful woman. I remember the first time we met her, she appeared strict, but she turned out to be such a caring and understanding person. Sam would often visit her and I was more than happy to tag along, as I'd almost begun to see her as the aunt I never had. My parents were both only children and, aside from them, all my other family lived outside of town. My heart sank as Mrs Daniels hugged her daughter so tightly, as if afraid to let go of her little girl ever again.
Then there were her father and brother, they were a different story. I didn't really know much about them. Exept that Mr Daniels travells a lot and Josh, her older brother, lives in New York. It was mostly just her and her mom. None the less, they were both here. Mr Daniels was standing right beside the hospital bed, staring at his weapping wife. I decided to give Sam some privacy with her parents so I strolled out to the waiting area.
Josh was planted on one of the chairs, holding his face between his palms. His eyes were focused on the floor and he was deep in thought. My presence didn't seem to affect him. Awkwardly, I seated myself on the chair right next to him "Hi!" I chirped.
Realising he didn't even bother to look at me, I cleared my throat to break the tension "I'm Jessica." I extended my hand, flashing a small smile to where he snapped his head, looking at me with confusion. He and Sam had the same, chesnut brown eyes "You must be Josh."
He simply nodded, quickly shaking my hand and falling back to his previous state. A sigh escaped my lips as a mist of silence fell over us. I never liked those awkward pauses in a conversation, there was something about them I didn't feel comfortable with.
"So...you're Sam's brother huh? Did you two get along?" I mumbled, desperatelly trying to decrease the tension. I always wondered what it would be like to have siblings. A sister or brother is supposed to be your best friend, they're supposed to have your back even when no one else does. No matter how much you fight or disagree, siblings are siblings.
Suddenly, Josh forgot all about his pervious thoughts. He gave me a glare, like he was trying to decide whether or not I really wanted to know. After a few moments, he just sighed "It's a long story."
"I have time." I curved my lips into a wry smile "If you want to talk."
He seemed to be taken aback by my curiosity. After debating on it himself, he finally spoke up, opening up to me as if we've known eachother for years insted of minutes "To be honest, we haven't spoken in almost years. As kids, we always used to fight, if one of us agreed on something, the other had to disagree. We hated eachother. I remember wnen I left for America, I thought I would be so glad to not have to look at her anymore. We lost touch...That's something I regret most. I had no idea she was accepted to college, I had no idea she graduated highschool either! I missed her eighteenth birthday, I didn't even know she had a boyfriend! Whoever he is, I hope he treats her better than I ever did." he almost shouted the last part, seeming angry at himself.
I parted my lips, trying to form an answer. I was at a loss of words, shocked with what he'd just told me. Actually, shocked by the way he said it. Even though he knows nothing other than that my name is Jessica, he just opened up about something incredibly personal. Without further hesitation, I blurted out "His name's Calum." and within seconds we were talking like old friends "And don't worry, he does."
"Is he here?" Josh questioned, causing my mouth to run dry "It's complicated...But he wants to be here and he's trying to be here."
"I just..." he shok his head, adverting his gaze towards the hallways that lead to Sam's room "I just wish that I could turn back time. Maybe things could be different now. Maybe-"
"Josh. It's not too late to fix what happened in the past. Why don't you go in there now and talk to your sister? I'm sure you two can sort it out. Before it is too late." I croaked out the last sentence.
"You're right!" he practically jumped off his chair "Thank you for listening to me, I hope I can repay you some time."
"You're welcome." I said under my breath as I watched him retreat determinedly. It felt warm to know at least Sam will get to have everything she wanted before...tears formed in the back of my eyes at just the thought. There was no one, not even the doctors, saying it will have to happen, but that didn't stop me from bawling my eyes out every night in the hotel. She can still pull through, right?
"Hey Jess, you okay?" I blinked back my tears as I came eye to eye with Jenna. She hasn't been the same these past few days, none of us have. We've all pulled back a lot, keeping most of our thoughts to ourselves.
"I'm fine I guess." I shrugged, unaware of the answer myself. I've just been lost in everything that's happened recently. Jenna nodded. A sigh escaped her lips as she plopped down next to me, placing her head on my shoulder.
"So will you help me complete Samantha's bucket list?" I asked after a couple of minutes of silence.
"Of course, you can count on me." she answered without hesitation "I'm sure Julie feels the same."
"Thanks." a smile crept up, it was nice to know we still and always will have eachother's backs "Well we can cross out the second and third wish after this."
"How so?"
"She wanted to see her family one more time and sort things out with her brother."
Jenna smiled "That's a really sweet wish...Well let's not waste any more time, we should go see what else is on her list." she pushed herself up "Just...Let me call my mom first."
I nodded "Yeah, I should go call my parents."
~~~~~~~
hey guys! double update!!!
i don't really have anything special to say for this chapter so i'm just gonna remind you all how much i love you :) i know i say it every time but it's true. you make my day better! remember that you are all beautiful and amazing and never listen to anyone who tells you otherwise. if anyone ever wants to talk or needs to get something off their chest, i'm here for you <3
love you xx
