Smile Like You Mean It

After another thirty minutes they were taken one by one back to their rooms for lunch. Before long I was left with the boy that was sat in the corner. "I'm Casey," I said as I stood from my chair and faced the boy on the floor.

"I'm not interested in looking for friends," he said in a harsh tone that made me jump a bit. I nodded even though he wasn't looking up at me.

"I understand, I was just like you when I was in here. It's hard I get that but don't forget to smile," I said as I walked over to where he was and sat on the floor across from him. "If something ever was going to happen to you you wouldn't want to go unhappy, I'm glad I didn't learn that the hard way," I said looking at him hoping he would say something not all to mean.

"You don't get it, I'm gonna die and no one cares. No one would come to my funeral," he said his tone getting softer and his face finally looking up at mine. His eyes were wide and watery, I could tell he'd thought about this for a long time.

"I care, and even though I don't even know your name yet I know I would still go to it," I told him a genuine smile on my face. "I remember having the same thoughts," I started talking, I sat there and told him everything. I told him when I first found out about my cancer and how bad it was, how my mother left my father and I, how chemo had only made it worse, and how the doctor said it spread to much for it to be able to be removed, and how the only answer was die or loose some limbs. I told him how I was going to have a surgery to take off my left leg, from the knee down but when they went in to do it they found out it had spread all the up my side, to my ribs. I told him they put my on chemo again and it worked but not that well, I told him about the three long years of living in the hospital on chemo, not even able to get out a bed and walk around. How I couldn't even get up to use the bathroom. I told him how I never saw my mother or siblings ever and I hardly saw my father, and how I was just like him with no smile or hope at all. Then I told him how the chemo had finally worked good, how I had a simple surgery and it was removed, and how after just a year of physical therapy I was walking fine on my own real legs. All because a few people had hope in me.

I was glad that he sat there and listened, not judging or running or claiming that I didn't understand how he felt, he just sat there and listened. I finished with telling him about how I smile every day and come volunteer as often as I could. By the time I finished he had a small smile on his face and a few stray tears running down his cheeks.

I leaned over and rubbed them away showing him a genuine smile. "Before you can be reborn you must die," I told him lightly. He smiled wide at me and lunged forward, wrapping his arms tightly around my neck.