Bruce continued with his treatment. The main drug used in his chemotherapy was cisplatin. It's main function was to shrink tumors but it was highly toxic to the rest of the body. Bruce, being the person he was, decided to download the toxicology report of the drug to see what it contained. In the report, he saw that although the drug worked, no-one knew why it worked. He chuckled when he saw that. "Well fuck. It'll kill the cancer but what the fuck will it do to the rest of my body?" Along with the chemo drugs he was also given anti-sickness drugs and steroids to help his other organs from going into shock from the chemotherapy. Bruce was starting to feel some of the side effects of the drugs, he was losing his sense of taste, and was told he may start losing his hair. "The fuck I will." he said. He hadn't had a beard since the early Maiden days, so in protest, he decided to grow a bushy, nasty looking beard.
Griffin looked at him one day and laughed when he saw his Dad's attempt at a beard, "The fuck is on your face Dad?" Bruce laughed at his sons reaction. "This is my "Fuck Cancer" beard. Do you like it?" Griffin smiled at Bruce, "No, but "Fuck Cancer", right? Just wait until Mum sees it."
Bruce hated what chemo was doing to his body. He could smell food, but he couldn't taste it. He couldn't walk down the street without being exhausted. His tongue had been stripped of it's lining and the nerves were exposed, causing him to be in excruciating pain. Bruce wasn't one to give up, but fuck, he was close to. This was too much to take, even for someone like him.
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Unbeknownst to Bruce, Steve had been keeping in touch with Paddy and his kids. He knew that Bruce didn't want anyone calling him or visiting him when he was at his most vulnerable, but he needed to know how his mate was. He knew Paddy was at Bruce's weekly appointment with him, so he decided to give Griffin a call. He found himself talking with Griffin the most, he had worked as a carpenter in the past with Iron Maiden and he reminded him of Bruce when he was young.
"Hey Steve, how are you mate? Still making sure Dad is alive?"
Steve chuckled, there was that wise ass Bruce humor, "Hello Griffin. I just wanted to see how he's doing. How treatment is affecting him." Griffin sighed, "Fuck Steve, it's hitting him pretty hard." Steve could hear Griffin trying to maintain control of his voice, "He's lost a ton of weight, he can barely eat, drink, talk...he can't fucking sleep. He can't take 2 fucking steps without getting tired. Steve, I'm fucking scared mate."
Steve had never heard Griffin sound so worried. He was Bruce's son. Austin and Kia were more like Paddy. They were more sensitive, more down to Earth.
"Griff, you're Dad will get through this. Just be there for him."
Griffin chuckled, "I've been holding in my emotions since I heard his diagnosis. I can't cry in front of him or Mum. They're going through enough already. But Steve, what if Dad doesn't beat it?"
Steve closed his eyes, tears rolled down his cheeks, he felt Griffin's pain. "Griffin, your Dad is going to be OK."
Griffin cleared his throat, "I really hope so, Steve. I really hope so."
