Chapter 14:
Brother-Like Friends, Fighting Together
Missy Lyn's funeral was set for the following Thursday. Matthew wanted to go to it very badly, as he knew her grandmother would probably be the only one there other than the hospital patients, but the treatment that he had to endure on the day they had heard of her death had taken his health with a vengeance. They had increased the dosage just a little bit in an attempt to try to fight the cancer harder, but they only resulted in making Matthew stay in the hospital for two whole days. He was so violently ill, that he could hardly protest his circumstances. He was released from the hospital the day before the funeral, but he was in no condition to go to a cold, drafty chapel and sit during a funeral.
Jeremiah came by to see how Matthew was doing after the funeral, but it was obvious that he wasn't doing too well either. His normally vivid eyes were duller than they should be under usual circumstances and his skin had a pallid, unhealthy look to it.
Of course, Matthew reminded himself. He's not healthy. He's fighting leukemia, just like me.
The chemo that both boys endured that day seemed to have taken the stamina that had always bounced them back to normality. Matthew usually had energy and an inability to stay still a few days after chemo, but his last treatment took away all the rest of his energy. He remained physically drained from then on out, getting sick immediately after chemo and then go back to a weak, sickly child. By May, normal health for Matthew meant weak and tired, and feeling good meant being able to run around outside for an hour before wearing out.
Jeremiah's chemo was affecting him greater than he would ever show anyone. He was a lot bigger than he was when he had received his first treatment years earlier, therefore receiving a greater dosage of the treatment in an attempt to detonate the rapid reproduction of cancer cells. He had to receive chemo more frequently than he had before "remission" and his body was just downright tired. He used Matthew as a reason to keep fighting, and Matthew kept going for him. When Matthew lay in his hospital bed and saw the park picture on the wall, he would remember Jeremiah's promise that he would walk with him every step of the way for the survivor walk, and Matthew determined to keep pressing on.
Time went on quickly for the warriors. Keith, Jeremiah, and Matthew were the only remaining chemo kids, and while the latter two were determined to fight for all they were worth, Keith's kidneys were not functioning as they had, and the doctor's believed they never would again. Matthew wanted to see Keith make it, as he was a peer and almost equal to him. He tried to cheer him up whenever he saw him and couldn't help but smile when Keith's face erupted in a grin. The three boys really bonded during hospital visits; Keith soon becoming a very close friend to Matthew. On the rare occasion that all three boys had treatments simultaneously, Dr. Regina and Dr. Powers would create a party-like atmosphere in the room, allowing the boys to play video games and eat pizza while receiving care. When these parties first started, there was some concern from the parents, but the doctors just smiled. Their explanation was that they wanted those boys to survive and walk out cancer free; while they were battling they might as well have fun!
Matthew had adjusted quite nicely to modern muggle culture. He still knew of the magical world, but it seemed like a vacation to him, returning to Diagon Alley and such. He was practically growing up muggle, completely immersed in their lifestyle and culture. He didn't know that little wizard boys his age were learning how to fly solo, performing small spells, and preparing for wizard preschool in the next few months. His life seemed completely normal to him, and he didn't really comprehend that he was missing out on the life he would have had without cancer. Keith introduced him to daytime television and other such wonders; amazed that Matthew hadn't seen them before.
Life kept moving at a rapid pace until it was the month of June: Matthew's fourth birthday and the mark of having one year of treatment. In honor of both Jeremiah's and Matthew's birthdays (Jeremiah's 17th and Matthew's 4th), the doctor's threw a party in a hospital room, allowing all three patients to have a hospital sleepover in celebration. Despite their weaknesses, the boys were incredibly excited in anticipation of the party.
They started out the party with a pillow fight that was stopped soon after Matthew fell off a hospital bed and hit his head, forming a knot. They started up the video games, which lasted for a while before more boredom ensued. Some time before midnight, they sat on the hospital beds around a box of pizza to talk, deciding that was the only thing they felt like doing then. They had polite chatter in the beginning until Keith spoke quietly, wiping a dribble of cheese from his mouth.
"What do you guys want to do, if you get out of here?"
Matthew tilted his head and thought about the life where he truly belonged. "I want to go to school where my parents met and fell in love."
Jeremiah smiled. "Your parents met in school?"
Matthew nodded proudly. "High school sweethearts."
"That's really cool…" His voice trailed off. "Wish that could happen to me."
Keith shook his head and shrugged. "Why can't it? You're a great guy, Jeremiah, and I'm sure we can pawn you off to some unknowing girl." Matthew giggled and Jeremiah shook his head. "Why not?"
"It just can't. There aren't any girls who would take me."
"Why not?" Keith repeated. Jeremiah sighed and turned away.
"It's a really long story."
"We have time," Matthew said reassuringly. "Go on."
"Okay, there's this girl. Her name is Sierra; she goes to my school. She's really amazing: reddish blonde hair, blue eyes, freckles brushed on her nose, and a really sweet personality. Well, I really like her, but I'm never going to ask her out for fear she would actually like me back. End of story."
"That wasn't long…"Matthew began, but Keith held up his hand to stop him from talking.
"Why would you be afraid that she'd like you in return?"
Jeremiah opened his mouth to speak before closing it again, giving him the appearance of a really stunned fish.
"We won't laugh at you or anything." For a six year old, Keith was very observant about other people.
"I don't want to scare you guys."
Matthew gave a `humph' and hit the bed with his little fist. "We an handle it. Haven't we had to be brave for treatments?" Jeremiah considered this and opened his mouth again to talk.
"I'm scared that she'd fall in love with me, and then I wouldn't make it through this, and she'd be hurt."
Matthew's mouth opened slightly, forcing him to take in more air. "Jeremiah, don't talk like that, you're going to make it; we all have to!"
Jeremiah looked at him sadly and extended his hand to carefully ruffle the little remaining hair on Matthew's head. "I hope you're right, Matt, I really do."
Keith grabbed another piece of pizza and shoved it in his mouth. "Eye donth oo axe er oouth?"
Amazingly, Jeremiah understood, and replied solemnly. "She'd never love someone like me. Plus I'm so sick."
Matthew was getting quite tired of the conversation and sighed irritably to prove it. "Jeremiah, if that's
what you want to do when you get out of here, you better get better and do it. What do you want to do,
Keith?"
Keith shrugged and looked back to Jeremiah cautiously. "I want to be a pilot. I mean, farther down the road, but that's what I want to do."
"I've flown before!" Matthew squeaked, thinking of Quidditch. The boys looked at him and nodded, thinking of airplanes.
"This one time, I was flying to Ireland…" Jeremiah started an anecdote, and the boys began to talk of more fun matters for the longest times, matters that were completely possible to occur. Matthew was glad that they had steered away from discussions of their futures, because he had a funny feeling that not all of them would have a future.
And he had good reason to believe this, especially when each of them found out the results of their latest blood analysis. Keith's cancer was spreading out of his kidneys, and the extraction of his left kidney would be necessary for any hope of his survival. Matthew's leukemia was still thriving, despite his increase in treatments. True, the white blood count level was going down a bit, but his body was still saturated with the deadly disease.
Jeremiah's news was the worst of all. He had only been receiving treatments for six months, but the white blood count in his body was higher even than Matthew's, and Matthew began to fear for his friend's life, knowing that he should fear for himself, too.
Keith's surgery was scheduled for the first week of July. He was incredibly anxious, having never gone under the knife before. Matthew and Jeremiah were anxious with him, scared for their friend. Both of the leukemia patients arrived at the hospital just in time to see Keith wheeled off to the operating room. They sat around in the meeting room all day, waiting for news of Keith's outcome. They looked through every single picture book numerous times, put together 4 puzzles, and walked down the hallways for what seemed like hours before Dr. Regina came over to them.
"How is he?" Matthew's heart pounded. Dr. Regina smiled and patted his head.
"He's out of surgery, though the anesthetics still haven't worn off. He's really weak and sick, so he'll be put in ICU for a while."
"That's great news!" Jeremiah said. "He made it through the surgery."
Matthew knew that it was a good thing that his friend had made it through, but a strange sense of foreboding tickled the back of his brain. The boys were fighting together, but he had an odd feeling of helplessness, almost as though all three of them were going up a raging river without a paddle, and not all of them knew how to swim.
A/N: Okay, I told ya'll that we'd be finding out little things about Jeremiah's life. Also, I need to get this story moving, so that's my explanation for my large time elapses. After all, chapter 18 takes place on Matthew's fifth birthday (just so you get an idea of how quickly this will be moving). Please R&R!
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