It Started With a Whisper

"Aria!" Cameron yelled my name as soon as he saw me, a wide smile spreading across his face. I walked over, kissing the top of his head.

"Hey buddy." I took my normal seat next to him, watching as he turned his body to face me. He looked a little better than the last time I saw him, but it wasn't much. Progress is progress though, right?

"I haven't seen you in a really long time. How come you don't come see me anymore? Are you mad at me?" The sadness in his eyes shattered my heart into a million tiny pieces. I hadn't forgotten about Cameron, but I had gotten so wrapped up in my own life that I hadn't even bothered to stop by. Guilt couldn't even begin to explain the way I felt at that moment.

"Of course not! I could never be mad at you!"

"Then how come you haven't been here?" He crossed his small arms over his chest, pouting like I had stolen his favorite toy.

"I've just been busy, but I promise I'll come around more, and next time I come I'll bring you cookies. How's that sound?" His face lit up instantly, and the weight on my heart lifted a little.

"Chocolate chip?" He was bouncing on his bed, excitement in his eyes. I giggled and nodded.

"Yep. Chocolate chip," I promised.

"Will you bring ice cream too?"

"I'll have to see if that's okay with your mom. That's a lot of sugar, and I don't want to be held responsible for you bouncing off the walls." He started pouting again, but before I could even blink, he was in his own world playing with his toys. I sat back in my chair, watching him with a smile on my face. I loved kids. They were so adorable and innocent....well most of them anyway.

"Is that guy your boyfriend yet?" Cameron's voice startled me from my thoughts, and I shook my head a little.

"What guy?" I hated that there had been more than one that came around. I didn't want to give Cameron the wrong impression.

"The one that brought you lunch that time." Of course he was talking about Dave. I shouldn't have been surprised, but I didn't know how to answer the question either. I didn't know what Dave and I were. We hadn't really established anything after he backed me into a corner and kissed me into oblivion. I didn't want to put a title on anything yet either.

"No he's not, but I like him." He smiled up at me.

"I knew it! And he likes you too! And you guys are gonna get married..." I stopped him before he could get carried away.

"Whoa whoa whoa. Calm down buddy. I'm still really young. It's too early for me to get married." I would never think that far into the future about anything other than my career. I was a person that needed stability in my life. I needed to have my priorities straight. Anything else that came along wasn't necessarily a definite factor in my life.

"But you guys are gonna get married. I just know it!" I sighed and shook my head. I had a feeling there was no changing his mind. I watched him play with his toys for a little longer before I stood up. As much as I wanted to spend all of my time in this room, I had to see some of the other kids.

"Where are you going? You just got here." I didn't like the fact that Cameron seemed panicked about me leaving. I leaned down and kissed his forehead.

"I'm just going to spend time with some of the other kids. Is that okay?" He nodded a little, seeming hesitant about his answer.

"Will you come back before you go home?"

"Yes. I won't be gone long." I smiled and walked out of the room, heading down the hall to a thirteen year old girl named Aimee's room. I hadn't spent much time around her seeing as how she was relatively new to the hospital, but I saw a lot of myself when I was that age in her. She had the same ambition that I did. She was determined to beat cancer and become a kindergarten teacher.

"Hey Aria." She smiled at me as I stood in the doorway.

"Hey Aimee. How you feeling?"

"Better than I have been for the past couple days. I only have a couple more weeks of chemo. I hope that I get to leave soon. I hate sitting in this room all day. I'm ready to go back to school." I felt bad. Even after she finished chemo, she probably wouldn't be able to leave for a while.

"You know, they're probably gonna keep you here until you're completely healthy. Your immune system is going to be weak. You could get really sick. They'll let you out, but you might not be able to go home." I hated to disappoint her, but I wanted her to have a realistic idea of what was going to happen to her. I had faith that she was gonna come out of this process alive, but I didn't want her to think that she was going to be able to jump back into her old life.

"I know, but eventually I will get to go home. That's what I'm looking forward to." I smiled. She was always really positive. It was one of the many things I liked about her. I was a bit cynical in the way I thought about certain things, so it was refreshing to be around someone that was the exact opposite.

"Where's Nick?"

"He was here earlier, but he said he had a lot of homework. He's gonna come back tomorrow." Nick was one of Aimee's friends...or maybe he was her boyfriend. I wasn't completely sure. All I knew was that he was one of the only people besides her family that came to see her everyday. She was always especially giggly when he was around.

"Do you like him?" I asked, a small smile on my face. Her cheeks instantly turned red, and I knew that I had my answer.

"Maybe," she mumbled, but I heard her loud and clear.

"You don't have to be embarrassed. I was your age once...not that long ago actually. I remember the first crush I ever had, but I won't pester you about him. I'm gonna go see some of the other kids. I'll see you later?" She nodded and waved as I made my exit. I stopped at a few more rooms before heading back to Cameron's. He was completely sleep when I walked in. I didn't want to disturb him, but I promised that I would see him before I left. I shook his shoulder a little, leaning over him.

"Aria?" He rubbed his eyes sleepily.

"Hey. I was just coming to say bye like I promised. You can go back to sleep." I kissed his cheek and patted his head before pulling his blankets over him.

"Bye," he whispered and was sleep again two seconds later. I walked out, closing his door behind me. I drove home with every intention of taking a long nap before I started the mountain of math homework that I knew was waiting for me. Unfortunately, when I walked into my apartment, the TV was on, meaning Amelia was here. There was no way I could get any sleep around her.

"Amelia, get out. I'm tired, and I have homework," I said, slipping off my shoes. Walking into the living room I realized Amelia wasn't the one sitting there. It was Dave.

"What are you doing here? How did you get in?" It wasn't that I wasn't happy to see him. I just wasn't expecting him. I hadn't gotten a heads up or anything.

"Amelia let me in. I didn't know you had work today. I brought food," he said, grabbing the paper bag that was sitting on the coffee table. I hadn't even noticed it.

"I smell sweet and sour pork." My mouth watered a little, and I snatched the bag, reaching for one of the boxes. I hadn't realized how hungry I was until that moment.

"Thank you," I said through a mouthful of food. He grinned, handing me napkin.

"You're welcome." I flipped through the channels, settling on a Vampire Diaries rerun and continued stuffing my face. When I was filled to my capacity, I wiped any excess food off of my face and placed my head in Dave's lap. When he started running his fingers through my hair, I knew it was done deal. I wasn't going to be awake much longer. I could feel myself drifting off when he started talking.

"I wanted to ask you something." I didn't like his tone. I knew this was going to end up being a serious conversation, and that was one thing I really didn't want to have right now.

"Go for it." I kept my eyes closed, hoping that would signal that I didn't really want to talk.

"What are we?" That was the dreaded question. I sighed, not knowing how to answer. I was trying my hardest not let my mind drift to the subject, but it seemed unavoidable now.

"I don't know." That was the best answer I could give him right now without hurting his feelings. I still had my reservations about us being together. He had to understand that.

"What do you want us to be?" His fingers had slowed down considerably, but I wasn't sure if he was upset or not. I opened my eyes and stared up at him, but his face gave nothing away.

"Do we have to put a title on it right now? Why can't we just keep doing what we've been doing?" I wasn't fond of titles. I didn't want to make that kind of commitment to someone that was just going to walk out on me in the end.

"Because I don't want to just mess around with you, Aria. You know how I feel about you, and I thought you felt the same." He removed his hand from my hair completely and started to move my head. I turned, wrapping my arms around his waist before he could completely stand up.

"Stop it. You know how I feel, but can't we just wait?" I pleaded, hoping he'd agree.

"No, Aria. I don't want to wait. You promised that you would try." He was right. I did promise him that I would try, but I didn't think that meant a title came with everything. I rubbed at the spot between my eyebrows. I knew I needed to make a decision now, or he was going to walk out and I wasn't sure if I'd ever get another chance.

"Okay," I sighed, sitting up and running my fingers through my hair.

"Okay what?" He raised an eyebrow at me.

"I promised you that I would try, so I'm going to try."

"So does that mean you're my girlfriend?" His eyes were alight with excitement, a smile slowly spreading across his features.

"Yes." What did I get myself into?