LETTER TO MY BESTFRIEND

CHAPTER 4: LETTER TO MY BEST FRIEND

What is time, really? When you are diagnosed with a terminal disease like cancer or leukemia, your perception of time changes.
-Craig Sager


||Ambers P.O. V||
The holiday was awesome, time with my family was great and I really look forward to visiting Nigeria again. I had an amazing time at the Calabar Carnival.

We were 10,00 feet above the ground, seated comfortably in the first-class section of a British Airways Plane. Mom was asleep, dad was going through some magazines and Danielle was tickled pink about giving Rose the gifts she got for her from Calabar and she didnt stop talking. She kept going on and on about the gifts she got for Rose.
We were five minutes away from the airport.
This is your pilot speaking, welcome to the U.K. We will be landing shortly, please locate your seats and fasten your seat belts. After the announcement, the air hostesses went round to make sure everyone was seated and had their seat belts on.
Danielle took her sit beside me and was still smiling. If we let her, she would have jumped off the plane just to get to Rose faster. She put on her headset to listen to Perfect by Ed Sheeran.
Now that there was peace and quiet, I went back to update my blog. The holiday was awesome, time with my family was great and I really look forward to visiting Nigeria again. I had an amazing time at the Calabar carnival.
The plane landed in no time and we got an Uber to take us home.
Home sweet home,
Well it wasnt home literally, but it was close to it.
It was about 10pm and we were all exhausted after a long flight, so we quickly unpacked and called it a day. We already had dinner in the plane.
The next morning, Danielle and I went to see Rose at her place. We didnt call because we wanted to surprise her.  I was actually excited too but by the time we got to her place we found out that no one was home, so we just went to grab some ice cream and pizza.

For some reasons unknown to us, resumption was postponed, for a month. During this short break, mom called Danielle and I to her room; she said she had something to tell us.
How are my babies doing?, she asked. Danielle and I looked at each other with suspecting faces. Mom tried to wear a poker face, but it wasnt working either.
I thought she did something and wanted to bribe us not to tell dad. Anyway, I wasnt certain. We just giggled a little.
She stood there frozen for some seconds, and then she drew both of us into a tight hug. She told us that Rose had been diagnosed with a brain tumor.
What?, when?, Danielle screamed with tears forming in both her eyes. Mummy, please talk to me, she said.
I just stood there shocked, confused and ..dead with fear. I didnt want to think what I was thinking.
Some days later, we went to see Rose at the hospital. She wasnt looking sick at all but she was placed under bed rest for that week. Danielle and she wanted to talk alone.

It took almost an hour. I dont know what went on in there, but Danielle came out with swollen eyeballs. Danielle and I fight a lot but trust me we could be best of friends.
She ran out of the ward and fell on my shoulder. My eyes began to water too. Her hoodie was already soaked in tears, her pale skin had become rather pink than what it is. I didnt know what to say but I just held on to my baby sister.
She was just 10 seconds younger than I was but shes still my baby sister.

That night I slept in her room (Danielle). She refused to eat throughout the day, and the chatterbox Danny was slowly turning into a lone wolf. I successfully convinced her to at least have some cereals.
She told me that Rose had only 6 months to live. I was scared to death, but I told her Its going to be ok.
After about two weeks, the hospital said Rose could do a surgery to remove the tumor and that theyd give her family time to think about it.  Her parents weighed options and agreed. In a week time, Rose went in to have her surgery.


||Danielles P.O.V||
So it was time for Roses surgery. Cold, gay Friday morning I guess but I had had better days. You know how a parent signs a document that says: If the patient dies the hospital wont be held responsible and that he/she agrees for the patient to have that surgery?????. Yeah

The corridors at the hospital were silent, too silent. Believe me it was deafening. I watched as the doors to the doctors office gave way for Roses mom. That smooth vanilla skin was red like a beetroot. I was anxious and very scared. But I knew I had to be strong. For Rose and I.

About half an hour later, Rose was on a stretcher. The doctors were pulling her body to the theatre.  Right about when the stretcher was in front of my seat, she turned towards my direction and smiled with dilated pupils. Immediately tears began to roll down my face, I started feeling sudden body weaknesses. It was crazy.

This surgery was the only thing left to determine whether I was going to have a best friend again or not. And the surgeons were the only things between Rose and the grave.

Thoughts flooded my mind because everything can go to hell in a second. If the anesthetist gave her an over doze she wont ever wake up, if her gave her too little, she could wake up in between the surgery and still end up dead. If the surgeon cut too deep in her brain, she might never be able to speak again like Oslo in money heist.

With me, I had, some gift cards that I wanted to gift to rose after her surgery. I still didnt write her a letter. Not because I was lazy again, but because I wasnt mentally stable at that point. I was going through a lot.

I fell asleep along the line. But I had to wake up sooner or later. I was seated beside Roses mom and the force at which she stood up, woke me up.
From a distance, I saw the surgeon that operated on Rose. He headed towards her mom. He wasnt smiling. Why wasnt he smiling?

Maybe a successful brain surgery wasnt a big deal for him. I didnt know.
He removed the stethoscope that rested on his neck, did same to his glasses and said: So sorry maam, we did all we could but we couldnt revive her.

Honestly, I couldnt describe the next scene. We were all in tears, I lost my bestie, her parents just lost an only child and no matter the number of children you have its not easy to lose one.
I couldnt believe my eyes. How are doctors so strong? Is it something they teach them in med school or do they just have dark souls?
In no time, the once energetic and clingy Rose was lying lifeless, in a body bag. They were moving her body to the mortuary.
It still hasnt occurred to me that Rose is gone. Forever. But the one thing I know is that I didnt write a LETTER TO MY BESTFRIEND. I had to at this point, because that was the last respect, I could give her. But why do good people die first?




   It was a great loss. To me, the school, and her family. My only consolation was that she was a good person and that she was in a better place. She was laid to rest the next day because there was no point keeping her in the mortuary.
It was on that day that I had written a LETTER TO MY BEST FRIEND. I felt so rejected and sad. Like I had lost a part of my soul. Memories we shared began to flash in my mind. The closer we were getting to putting her 6 feet under, the more of Rose I saw. Finally, because of how close we were, I was given a moment to read my LETTER TO MY BESTFRIEND.


                      Dear Rose,
Im so sorry, I didnt get this to you on time. I know you can here me, so, I hope you find a place in your heart to forgive me. If I had written earlier, maybe I wouldnt have been feeling as guilty as I do right now. I am so sorry that it has been a long time since we spoke, had pizza together, struggled for who was going to pay for lunch and all but I want you to know that you were and are still the best. There is no one like you rose. Even though youre not here physically, lets try to keep a bond between us, at least for the sake of the years we spent together, struggling for a better tomorrow. I love you Rose.
Love Danielle .

After I read my letter,her grave was covered up.

May her soul rest in perfect peace

To conclude this book, I recall its opening epigraph, that is, the quote from Craig Sager: What is time, really? When you are diagnosed with a terminal disease like cancer or leukemia, your perception of time changes. Now consider this question: If you knew you were going to kick the bucket today, and you still make that choice youre about to, will you make it to a beautiful after life?...

Thank you all for the corrections and also for pulling through with me. Please vote, follow and feel free to tell me your observations :) .
I'm working on another book with a friend.  I'll keep you updated.

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