Fighter

Chapter 4

Morning came almost too quickly for her liking when her phone rang. She blindly pawed around the bedside table for it before sliding it open to answer. "Hello?" "Hi Erin, it's Dr Janson. Is this a good time?" She glanced at her alarm clock. "Yeah, I don't have to be at work until 10am." "Erin, your lab results were on my desk as soon as I walked in this morning. Do you think if at all possible you could come into my office to chat?" Erin was wide awake now, sitting up in her bed. "You can just tell me over the phone." She urged. "I think it would be best if-." "Please just tell me." Erin cut her off. She heard a slight sigh, and some papers rustling. "The results of the biopsy and bloodwork all came back worse than I anticipated. It's ovarian cancer." Erin nearly dropped her phone onto the bed. The big C. Not just any cancer, the same as what had taken her foster mother from her. "Erin? Are you still with me?" "A-are you sure? I mean...is there a chance that it was wrong? It didn't feel cancer bad." She asked, her voice quivering. "I'm sorry. I wish I had a better result to give you. Especially so early in the morning. I'd like you to come in to discuss treatment today, do you think your workplace would mind?" "N-no. They won't. I'll be there." Good. I'll clear my morning. You come in as soon as you can." "I'll be on my way." She ended the call and dropped the cell phone onto the sheets. She tossed back the blankets and in auto pilot, she threw on whatever she could find, grabbed what she needed and headed out.

Fifteen minutes she was back in the hospital. This time inside a board meeting room. "Hi Erin. I'm sorry you had to put your day on hold." Dr Jansen said, taking a seat and placing some papers and such on the big marble table. "So I have some brochures for you to take home, as well as some of the best oncology departments. Now, as for treatment options, with this particular type of cancer, treatment can be extremely aggressive. You won't have the kind of energy it takes to do your job, so time off would be wise. Do you have family here?" Erin shook her head. "I would advise calling them. The sooner the better, you're going to want that emotional support, not to mention the extra assistance." She slid the reading material across to Erin. "Do you have any questions?" So many. Yet she shook her head. "I know this is an extreme amount of news to take in. I'm here for any questions you might have. I unfortunately do not specialize in Oncology, but as I mentioned earlier, there is everything I can think of inside that folder. Take a read through and let me know what you decide on. The sooner the better on this, as treatment is very time sensitive. Do you need me to sit with you?" She asked catching the unshed tears in Erin's eyes. "No. No I'll be okay. Thank you so much for all of this." She gestured toward the file folder. "You have my number if you need anything in the meantime. Just make sure you make a decision fairly quickly on where to do treatment. And make sure you have that emotional support." Erin sat back in the chair just taking it all in for a moment, before picking up the info and heading back to her apartment.