That Girl Who's Dying

4~ News

I was awoken by sounds of someone crying from the room beside mine.

"Mum?" I tiptoed to her room and knocked on the door quietly. The crying stopped abruptly.

"Yes, dear?" My mother opened the door with a creak. Her eyes were bloodshot, and she was hunched over. "Why are you crying?" I asked. My mother bit her lip and started sobbing again as she let me into her room.

"I'm sorry, Kara. I didn't want to tell you this before," She sniffled. I looked up, confused. "What do you mean? Tell me what?" I demanded. I was getting sick of everybody keeping secrets from me and whispering behind my back.

"Well..." My mother sighed. "Recently, you developed this thing called...pneumothorax." I blinked, taken aback by the complicated word.

"What?"

"It's..." She hesitated. "It means one of your lungs has collapsed."

I froze, slowly taking in the news my mother had kept from me. My lung has collapsed. I didn't believe it. "Can it be...healed?" I asked, hopeful. My mother's eyes told me otherwise.

"Like the doctors keep saying." She sighed unhappily. "You need a donation." My face fell.

No wonder my parents were so upset.

***

"Help," I croaked.

I couldn't breathe. My chest hurt badly. When I tried to suck in air with my mouth, the oxygen didn't seem to enter my lungs. With that, my breathing was fast paced and shallow.

My parents were panicking. "Kara, try your best to breathe! We're getting the ambulance!" I nodded hastily. My father rushed off, leaving me with my mother.

I was getting weaker. I could feel it.

Every breathe I tried to take was a torture as I felt my lungs being ripped apart. My mother looked on worriedly and patted my back soothingly. However, it didn't ease my breathing.

"I-I...I can't-"

I blacked out. Again.

***

I woke up in the same hospital as I was in before. Groaning, I sat up. The same heart rate monitor was still on the table, but now, there were a few tubes plugged into my arm. Disgusted by the look of them, I pulled them out and dropped them onto the table.

"What do you think you're doing?" A sharp voice reprimanded me. I looked up quickly. In front of me was a doctor who's name tag read "Doctor Lee". Her brown hair was pulled up into a tight bun, and her pitch black eyes bore into me like she was looking into my soul.

She rather reminded me of my headmistress.

"It's uncomfortable." I didn't back down, looking her straight in the eye. She didn't flinch. "You do know that the tubes are necessary for your health." She walked over and plugged them back into my arm. I hissed as the sudden pain hit. Doctor Lee looked smug as she saw this.

"Stop fidgeting, or I'll have to inject you." She waved a syringe in my face. I rolled my eyes, not letting her win.

"Kara?" Kai came into the room. Doctor Lee turned and put on a fake smile.

"Well hello! I was just attending to Kara. You came in right on time." Doctor Lee masked her voice with faux cheerfulness.

Kai didn't look convinced. "Well, it looks like she's in pain to me." I nodded vigorously behind Doctor Lee's back, hoping Kai would understand. He gave me a slight nod in return.

Doctor Lee stiffened. "That might be because of the injection I gave her." She held up the needle.

I raised an eyebrow. "What injection?" Doctor Lee fell silent.

Luckily for her, my parents came into the room at that very moment. Her sigh of relief was unmistakable. My mother gave a weak smile as she saw me. She had dark eye bags under her eyes, and there were wrinkles on her face that definitely weren't there before.

"Kara, you're alright." She embraced me in a comforting hug. I relaxed my mind. With my parents here, Doctor Lee wouldn't try anything without their permission.

After Doctor Lee talked to them about my current condition, it was time to go home. On the way back, my mother talked about what her doctor had said about her insomnia.

"He prescribed me a type of pill that will help me sleep. It's working really well." She sounded happy as she said this. I smiled gratefully. At least my mother was calm.

While I was not.