Two Months

I wiped my eyes and reached for Kody’s sweatshirt again. I sniffled and pulled it over my head before closing my balcony door. I sat down at my desk and buried my face into Kody’s scent while I finished my Chemistry lab write-up. A soft knock at my door alerted me to my mother’s presence.

“Come in.” I sighed, typing the last sentence and clicking PRINT.

“You’ve been working on that Chemistry for a long time now.”

“Kody stopped by.”

She glanced towards the balcony and the water surrounding it. She chuckled and shook her head.

“Leave it to that boy to figure out secret ways to get in your room.”

I gave her a weak smile.

“Oh, honey.” She pulled me out of my chair and into a hug. “Boys suck.”

“It’s not him, it’s me. I never told him.” I mumbled, refusing to let the tears overflow again.

“Lillian.” She said sternly, pulling away to look me in the eyes. “You never told him? After all these years?”

“I was supposed to get better! I was supposed to live and be fine until after we left for college and he could move away and just forget about me. I wasn’t supposed to die yet.”

I had never said it like that, never stated it so bluntly. My mom’s eyes filled with tears and I immediately felt guilty.

“I’m sorry, Mom. Really.” I said, hugging her again.

“It’s fine. I’m fine. It’s late, Lil. We should get to bed.”

“Sure. I love you.” I whispered.

“I love you too, my sweet.”

She stroked my cheek and disappeared from my room, leaving a faint smell of lemons behind her. I fell onto my bed, exhausted from the too-long day. I curled into a fetal position and was asleep within minutes.

I slept without dreams but awoke with a stiff neck and rigid leg muscles. I groaned and struggled to pull myself out of bed. Just getting to the bathroom took most of my energy. My breathing was labored and I leaned against the counter top to catch my breath. When I caught sight of Kody’s now dry clothing hanging on the towel rack I had to bite back my sadness. I reached to grab them and yelped out as the muscles in my left leg cramped and sent me crashing to the floor. I could tell it was a stay-at-home kind of day. I managed to crawl back into bed after popping a muscle relaxant hidden in an old Altoids tin. It was twenty minutes before my mom called me.

“What is it today, Lily?” She asked, worried.

“Neck and legs. I could barely get to the bathroom!” I cried, frustrated at my own failures.

“I’m sorry, Lil.”

“It’s fine, but there’s no way I’ll make it into school.”

“School may not be your biggest problem…”

“Mo-om!” I groaned.

“It’s nothing big, dear, just this case. I won’t be able to make it home until later so Mrs. Marks is going to come over and check on you after school…or she might send Kody…”

I growled internally. It wasn’t my fault that some big business tycoon had cheated on his wife with a pre-nup in place. It wasn’t my fault she was requesting full custody and more alimony than she had a right to. It wasn’t my fault my mother was stuck in the middle of it. But I was going to be the one paying for it.

“That’s fine. I’m going back to bed.” I sighed, knowing better than to fight this battle.

“I love you, Lily. I have to be in the office early tomorrow morning, but I’ll see you after school.”

“I love you too, Mom.”

I hung up and rolled over in order to face the television across from me. While Animal Planet played through a marathon of Whale Wars, I tried to make my stiff muscles as comfortable as possible. I drifted to sleep sometime during the third episode.

When I woke up, the Steve Irwin and her Sea Shepherd crew were still hot on the tails of the whalers and there was an incessant knocking coming from downstairs. Knowing it was most likely Mrs. Marks, I forced myself out of bed and down the stairs. Thankfully the muscle relaxants from earlier had started working. The knocking continued until I opened the door, yawning as I rubbed my eyes, and came face to face with the one and only Kody Marks.