"Manuela seemed pretty alarmed."
Jeralt and Byleth were sitting in the doctors office after Byleth's doctor, Manuela Casagranda ran some tests on her, and was now getting back to them. She seemed shocked after checking on Byleth's heartbeat, even though Byleth knew her heart simply didn't beat already.
"Well, isn't she always?" Byleth shrugged, not wanting to appear worried. In truth, something felt off. Her chest felt tight, like something was squeezing her. Besides, Manuela never appeared to be very worried. She was always very sassy, even when times had been rough. It wasn't like Manuela to worry.
But Byleth didn't want to think about that.
"No. It's not like her," Jeralt called her out on her lie, and Byleth sighed. She ran a hand through her teal hair nervously, before realizing that she was accidentally copying Claude's mannerisms. She dropped her hand into her lap, sighing.
"...You're right."
"Byleth? Jeralt?" Manuela knocked on the door before opening it and walking in. She had a clipboard clutched to her chest, and a somber looo on her face as she sat in her designated seat. "Alright, so I ran these tests...The ones from your other visit are still clean. However, these tests are...a bit different."
"Different?" Jeralt raised a brow, demanding answers. "What do you mean different?"
"Well...This might be strange to hear. We've always thought you were a phenomenon, but these tests..." Manuela hesitated, her eyes shifting to Byleth. Manuela gulped, glancing at her clipboard once more. "My dear, these tests are telling us that your heart is actually...beating. It's actually beating."
A moment of utter silence passed as they both took the time to digest what Manuela has said. And then;
"Wait...what?"
"It's beating?" Byleth questioned, breathless. She brought her hand to her chest, her eyes widening as she felt the steady pound of her heartbeat. A large, uncontrollable grin grew on her features. "My heart...It is beating. That's what I must have felt yesterday, I must have felt my heartbeat and I didn't even know!"
"You mean...We don't have to worry about her heart anymore?" Jeralt asked. All he had ever wanted was to hear that his beloved daughter would be able to live a nice, healthy life. Byleth was happy for both of them. It was over. The chaos was gone! She could finally adapt to a normal, humane lifestyle. Hell, with Claude in her life, she was finally starting to learn to be happy!
"I'm normal! My heart is beating, and-"
"Hold on, dear. I hate to break up the happy moment," Manuela interrupted, a solemn look on her face. "Your heart is beating, yes...but it's actually causing some problems within your body."
"Causing...Problems?" Byleth frowned, the smile dropping from her face. "But...How? Everyone else has a heart, and it normally doesn't cause problems for them. How come it's causing problems for me?"
"Your body has always been different," Manuela reminded her solemnly. "You were functioning without a beating heart. Now that your heart is working...your body is rejecting it. I don't know the specifics, but it's like your chest doesn't want the heart. That's why you felt that chest pain."
"I-I don't understand," Byleth frowned. "It's not a good thing..So then what? This beating heart means...it means...?"
Manuela sighed, and then looked at her directly and gently.
"Byleth...you're dying."
YOU ARE READING
Race Against Time
Fanfiction"BYLETH, YOU'RE DYING." Those were the words Byleth Eisner had heard her entire life...but it had never rang true. She had always known that the doctors were wrong, that she was going to keep living, but the fear of death was constant. Born with a h...
