And The Sun Shall Rise

My sister joins me on the roof. She sits down next to me.

"What are you doing, Gigi?" She asks. I notice she uses her nickname for me, like she usually does, but now it feels different. Special. I want to hold onto it forever.

"I'm thinking."

"Of what?"

I take a minute to take in everything around me. The mist that settled on the mountains and the town overnight. The way the rising sunlight lights up anything it touches, waking the world from its peaceful slumber. The birds overhead, flying south in preparation for winter. The autumn breeze gently brushing across my face and through my hair. I'm trying to memorize it. To take it in. To enjoy it while I can.

"I'm thinking of winter," I finally say. "I'm thinking of how the town will look under a blanket of white snow, and how the snow will at last melt away, revealing the green grass and blooming flowers in the spring. How people are going to stroll under the blooming trees, and see all of the beautiful flowers, smelling their sweet fragrance. How they'll run through the parks and plant their gardens and stay out until dark, just enjoying the marvelous spring. The spring that I won't get to see."

Sophia leans on me, and she's quiet for a minute. "I'm really going to miss you, Gigi," she whispers, her small voice quivering.

"I know, Soph," I say, trying to keep my voice steady. "I know."
* * * * * * *
Grace Nicholson has been in and out of hospitals basically her whole life. When things take an unfortunate turn for the worse, she decides to make the most of the time she has left. Though she's dying, she learns what it truly means to be alive, meeting new friends along the way and making memories to last a lifetime.