Burdens [Furry BxB]

Chapter 113 - Acceptance

Roger thought he had not heard the lion correctly. "What did you say?"

"There's a tumour in your brain," the lion repeated.

The fox shook his head. "No way. It's just the flu." How would the lion know, anyhow?

"I asked you about the symptoms merely to confirm it," Greg explained. "It's not really bright out. You're just sensitive to light. Sometimes you don't get nauseous, which it seems you've been lucky. Dizziness, constant headaches. Have you ever felt the pressure in your head before?"

The lion put his paws on the table. "The painkillers aren't really what's causing the pain to go away so much as any other anti-inflammatory would. It's reducing the swelling slightly. Have you ever felt things change? That your mental processes got harder or easier, or anything at all? Maybe tougher to imagine things. Maybe odd dreams at night."

The fox remembered that recently things had become a bit more vivid for him and that everything had seemed easier. Still, that was hardly proof. Then again, everything else went in line with what the lion was saying. It could not be true, though.

"It's fine to deny it," Greg said. "If someone told me I had a tumour, I wouldn't believe it, either."

Roger nodded slowly. It felt like a sick joke.

Hunter had been sitting there, listening, but confused. He looked at the fox and said, "What does he mean, Roger?"

The fox sighed and said, "He's saying that I'm very, very sick."

The wolf's eyes widened and he was filled with panic. He nearly leapt out of his seat, but the fox put a paw on his arm, urging him to stay seated.

"We don't know if it's real, or he's just making it up," he told the wolf. "There's no way he could just be able to tell that without performing an examination."

Greg shrugged. "That would normally be true, were my senses normal. I told you that Hunter and I smelled it, right? There's a very distinct smell, very hard to detect when it comes to those awful things. Now, if it were just a benign one, I might not even have mentioned it, just told you to see a doctor, but judging by the rapidly deteriorating situation, I have to say something. Cancer has a very, very distinct odour."

The wolf looked back and forth between the fox, who had been staring sceptically at the lion, and the lion, who had a concerned look on his face, staring at the fox. He shook the fox's arm and asked, urgency in his voice, "What does he mean by that?"

Roger slowly said, trying not to put any fear into the wolf, "He's saying that there's... something making me sick and that I need to see the doctor. Still, he's not a doctor, so there's no real reason to worry yet."

Still, Hunter turned to the lion and asked in a panicked voice, "Can you explain it to me?"

Roger was about to protest, but the lion held a paw. He said, "He has a right to know."

The fox withdrew and sat there silently. He knew it might cause the wolf more harm than good to know about such unnecessary things.

The lion explained, "So a tumour is a growth, kind of like a balloon filling up with water, except part of the body." When he was sure the wolf nodded and understood, he continued, saying, "Roger, unfortunately, has one in his head. It's growing out of his brain, and if it were just a small, benign tumour, it would not really harm him all that much, unless it became what it is now, which is a malignant, cancerous one. It's going to keep growing, and it might spread."

The wolf seemed to understand the words that the lion was saying, but did not really fully grasp the meaning. He knew whatever it was, it was bad. He waited patiently for further clarification on the matter.

The lion continued, "He needs to see a doctor as soon as he can. If it continues, he will die." He emphasized the last part so that the wolf could understand the full weight of the situation.

It was unnecessary because as soon as the wolf heard those words, he stood up and grabbed Roger's arm, although a bit too hard, as the fox yipped in pain. He relaxed his grip lightly but still held him firmly.

The café had turned to look at them for a moment. Whispering began, and some thought that it was their time to take Roger's place as Hunter's private tutor. Perhaps there was a quarrel. It was the perfect opportunity. However, they saw that he was not mad at the fox, so they went back to their own lives, disappointed.

"What are you doing?" Roger asked incredulously. He struggled a little to wrench himself free from the wolf's grasp, feeling a bit hurt, physically and emotionally, but was unable to do anything. He felt exceedingly tired.

Greg put his paws up in a disarming pose. "Now, now, I know it's an urgent matter, but don't try to put too much strain on him. He needs some gentle treatment right now. We don't want it to get worse."

Hunter's grip lessened a little more and he stopped trying to pick the fox up. He nodded, understanding. "What do I do, then?" He seemed to be ignoring the fox's cries of protest for the most part.

Roger said, "You don't have to do anything, okay? I'll be fine. You don't even know if this guy is telling the truth. It's just the little flu, I'll get better, okay? I'm not going to die, Hunter."

The wolf seemed to relax a little from his words, but not completely. He was sceptical of the lion's words, but he did not want to risk it.

Greg did not react negatively to the accusation. "It's okay, Roger. No one wants to believe such awful news," he repeated. "I have nothing to gain from lying, though. If anything, I can only lose from you dying. I would lose my chat partner and a friend."

He closed his eyes and put his paws on the table. "Go ahead and talk it out. I can't read your lips like this, so you'll have your privacy."

With that, the fox turned to the wolf and said, "Don't trust his word, Hunter. Who has known you more? Him or me? Who do you trust more? I know my own body, okay? I just have the flu, that's all."

Hunter was staring at him, trying to figure out the best course of action. He was torn inside.

Roger continued, "The light sensitivity is nothing. Just get that way sometimes. Been inside too long. The headaches are just because I'm so tired and dehydrated, and they go away, so it's fine. The fatigue, the fevers... that's just the flu, okay? It'll be fine. I'll be fine."

As he said, he could hear his voice choke up, and he cleared his throat, but his voice still came out rough. "I'll be okay, Hunter. And... and if I'm not...."

His eyes began to water as he spoke. "If I'm not, I don't want to spend... what we have, just lying in a bed, okay? I want to spend it with you."

He broke down. "I don't want to waste what time I have, okay? I'll be fine with this. I'll be fine with you."

"You finally accepted it," the lion commented. His eyes were still closed.

Roger looked at him and said, "I thought you weren't supposed to be listening." There was no response, so he tapped the table and got the lion's attention, then repeated himself.

"I wasn't," the lion said. "I could smell it, though. The fear. Your tears. You knew I was telling the truth, didn't you?"

The tears would not stop falling. Roger slumped onto the table and whimpered quietly.

"So what did you decide?" the lion asked.

Hunter spoke up. "We didn't decide just yet. He... he said he doesn't want to waste his time in a hospital if he was going to die anyway." His voice was shaky and his ears folded. The lion could not feel the trembling voice, but he could see from his posture that he was afraid and hurt.

The lion nodded slowly. "Then let me make the decision for you. Go to the hospital. Get the operation. If it's successful, and with technological advancements these days, it usually is, you get to keep your life. Why would you not want that?"

He turned his gaze to the fox. "Wouldn't you want to stay with Hunter?" He then turned to the wolf and asked, "And wouldn't you want Roger to stay alive? I think the answer is pretty simple."

And it was decided.