Status: writers block ugh :/ may update soon, may not.
The Girl With the Half Beating Heart
such a heart that will lead you to deceiving
"So, Acacia, what's your story?" She sighs, giving him a slight smile.
"Okay, so here goes nothing. On a rainy Tuesday in San Diego, California, March 21th, 1989, to be specific, a baby girl was born. Acacia Rene-Mendez Castillo. Her mom's maiden name is Mendez, so that's why it's a part of her middle name." She replies, looking at the floor of elevator. Alex bites his lip, very interested in what she has to say. "She was a tiny thing, with a full head of curly hair, which still annoys her to this day. She was a healthy baby, or so they thought." Acacia whispers, still not making eye contact with Alex. "Her heart beat was showing weird beats on her fetal monitor. It seemed that it was beating in a series of half beats, followed by a single whole beat. And her fingers were turning purple. So of course all the doctors were baffled, and her parents were terrified. She’s rushed to infant ICU, where they run mutiple tests, while little Acacia was in a sterile box, hooked up to a breathing machine. It takes them weeks to find out what's wrong with her, while she sits in her little box, with her family worried sick. Sadly, she's become used to this lifestyle. Not sitting in a little box," she laughs quietly, finally looking to Alex, who smiles slightly. "Constantly fighting for her life, and leaving her family in a state of distress." She finishes with a whisper.
"So after weeks of studying her case, the doctors finally figure out what's wrong with little Acacia. She has a rare heart condition, dimidium pulsuism. There was only 8 cases in America, and now 9 including her. Her parents are relieved now that they know what's wrong, but little do they know, they have a long life ahead of them with her." She winces a bit, because her chest seems to be getting tighter. She sighs, and pulls her knees into her chest again.
"Years of treatment go by, and her condition eventually became manageable, of course by taking a cocktail of medications, and doing weekly heart treatments and what not. There have been slip ups, which have almost costed her her life. But at age 7, Acacia's condition becomes too much for her parents. The hospital bills, the medications, the insurance only covered so much. So they did what they thought was best for their daughter, and sent her to her wealthy aunt Amanda in Baltimore, who's also a cardio surgeon. They knew she'd be in good hands, so that's why they sent her." Acacia says with a smile, thinking of her Tia Amanda. She works in this very hospital, but she's not working tonight.
"Throughout the years, Amanda took good care of her, and she grew amazingly close to her. She even let her dance at a local studio, which later on became everything she stood for. Her parents got better jobs, and saved up as much as they could. They were going to move Acacia back to California, but she didn't want to leave Baltimore. So, her applied for jobs there, and he finally got one, so they moved when she was 13. They immediately bought a house for Acacia and her little sister Rosalinda, which her mom had when Acacia was 10, and they settled into a new lifestyle, trying to do the best they could for their daughter." She says, biting her lip. She feels like someone is sitting on her ribcage, and that her chest is on fire, but her face doesn't show it at all.
"So life was good for Acacia, living with her family, managing her condition, and living her dream of dancing. Until she turned 15. For some reason, when she turned 15, her condition took a turn for the worse." She mumbles, and Alex leans forward. He's very intrigued by her story. "The pain became unbearable at times, and her medicine wasn't working like it used to. She found herself in and out of the hospital, constantly fighting to breathe another day. She told herself over and over that she would fight as hard as she could. She told herself that she would not let her condition be the way she died, because that's not what she wanted to be known for. Not 'the girl with the disease.' She refused." Acacia adds, pushing her hair out of her face. She sighs again.
"But lately, she doesn't know anymore. The fight is becoming too hard. Her medical bills are sky rocketing, her dad is becoming a workaholic to pay for everything, her mom is falling into depression, and the both of them fight constantly. And poor little Rosalinda, she can't even get anything she wants, because all the money in the house goes straight to Acacia." She explains, thinking of her little sister. "So many times Acacia has almost lost her life, especially in the last year. She doesn't even see a point in it anymore. Her life is just an endless recycle of recitations." She adds, becoming more melancholy.
"Honestly, she prayed that this time she came in the hospital, that she wouldn't wake up. Because she's tired of being a leech. If she wasn't around, her parents wouldn't be like this. They'd most likely be in California still, with the rest of their family. Rosalinda deserves better, her parents deserve better, her entire family does. And they'll never get it as long as Acacia is around." She sighs, feeling a warm drop of water on her cheek. She's crying.
"God. I'm sorry I'm such a hypocrite." She laughs out pathetically with a sniffle, putting her head in between her knees. Alex is in total shock. The happy, free spirited girl who just talked him out of jumping off a ledge, is falling apart. Without hesitation, he scoots closer to her, and wraps his arms around her.
"Hey, it's okay. It's okay." He cooes, stroking her hair. "I know it's hard, but remember what you told me?" He questions, letting go of her, so she can sit up. She does, looking to him, her face stained with tears, but she nods. "You're alive for a reason. If you've had that many near death experiences, and you're still alive, then goddammit, you're definitely here for an important purpose. You may not know it now, but you will soon, I promise." He reassures her, and she smiles at him.
"Thank you so much." She says with a sniffle, smiling slightly.
"It's all good. And you're not a hypocrite, you were just trying to help me. And you did. If it wasn't for you, I'd be dead." He mumbles, looking down. His hair is falling in his eyes, but he doesn't bother to fix it. Acacia looks to him, wiping tears from her eyes.
"Hey Alex?" She whispers, and he looks up.
"Hey Acacia." He whispers back, giving her his lopsided smile. She smiles back.
"Promise to me alive if I keep you alive?" She asks, and he nods, extending his hand. She grabs it, and shakes it.
"Deal." He replies. She leans her head on his shoulder, and the both of them sit there in silence, feeling closer than ever before.
The elevator shaft creaks, and the elevator starts moving upward.
"Okay, so here goes nothing. On a rainy Tuesday in San Diego, California, March 21th, 1989, to be specific, a baby girl was born. Acacia Rene-Mendez Castillo. Her mom's maiden name is Mendez, so that's why it's a part of her middle name." She replies, looking at the floor of elevator. Alex bites his lip, very interested in what she has to say. "She was a tiny thing, with a full head of curly hair, which still annoys her to this day. She was a healthy baby, or so they thought." Acacia whispers, still not making eye contact with Alex. "Her heart beat was showing weird beats on her fetal monitor. It seemed that it was beating in a series of half beats, followed by a single whole beat. And her fingers were turning purple. So of course all the doctors were baffled, and her parents were terrified. She’s rushed to infant ICU, where they run mutiple tests, while little Acacia was in a sterile box, hooked up to a breathing machine. It takes them weeks to find out what's wrong with her, while she sits in her little box, with her family worried sick. Sadly, she's become used to this lifestyle. Not sitting in a little box," she laughs quietly, finally looking to Alex, who smiles slightly. "Constantly fighting for her life, and leaving her family in a state of distress." She finishes with a whisper.
"So after weeks of studying her case, the doctors finally figure out what's wrong with little Acacia. She has a rare heart condition, dimidium pulsuism. There was only 8 cases in America, and now 9 including her. Her parents are relieved now that they know what's wrong, but little do they know, they have a long life ahead of them with her." She winces a bit, because her chest seems to be getting tighter. She sighs, and pulls her knees into her chest again.
"Years of treatment go by, and her condition eventually became manageable, of course by taking a cocktail of medications, and doing weekly heart treatments and what not. There have been slip ups, which have almost costed her her life. But at age 7, Acacia's condition becomes too much for her parents. The hospital bills, the medications, the insurance only covered so much. So they did what they thought was best for their daughter, and sent her to her wealthy aunt Amanda in Baltimore, who's also a cardio surgeon. They knew she'd be in good hands, so that's why they sent her." Acacia says with a smile, thinking of her Tia Amanda. She works in this very hospital, but she's not working tonight.
"Throughout the years, Amanda took good care of her, and she grew amazingly close to her. She even let her dance at a local studio, which later on became everything she stood for. Her parents got better jobs, and saved up as much as they could. They were going to move Acacia back to California, but she didn't want to leave Baltimore. So, her applied for jobs there, and he finally got one, so they moved when she was 13. They immediately bought a house for Acacia and her little sister Rosalinda, which her mom had when Acacia was 10, and they settled into a new lifestyle, trying to do the best they could for their daughter." She says, biting her lip. She feels like someone is sitting on her ribcage, and that her chest is on fire, but her face doesn't show it at all.
"So life was good for Acacia, living with her family, managing her condition, and living her dream of dancing. Until she turned 15. For some reason, when she turned 15, her condition took a turn for the worse." She mumbles, and Alex leans forward. He's very intrigued by her story. "The pain became unbearable at times, and her medicine wasn't working like it used to. She found herself in and out of the hospital, constantly fighting to breathe another day. She told herself over and over that she would fight as hard as she could. She told herself that she would not let her condition be the way she died, because that's not what she wanted to be known for. Not 'the girl with the disease.' She refused." Acacia adds, pushing her hair out of her face. She sighs again.
"But lately, she doesn't know anymore. The fight is becoming too hard. Her medical bills are sky rocketing, her dad is becoming a workaholic to pay for everything, her mom is falling into depression, and the both of them fight constantly. And poor little Rosalinda, she can't even get anything she wants, because all the money in the house goes straight to Acacia." She explains, thinking of her little sister. "So many times Acacia has almost lost her life, especially in the last year. She doesn't even see a point in it anymore. Her life is just an endless recycle of recitations." She adds, becoming more melancholy.
"Honestly, she prayed that this time she came in the hospital, that she wouldn't wake up. Because she's tired of being a leech. If she wasn't around, her parents wouldn't be like this. They'd most likely be in California still, with the rest of their family. Rosalinda deserves better, her parents deserve better, her entire family does. And they'll never get it as long as Acacia is around." She sighs, feeling a warm drop of water on her cheek. She's crying.
"God. I'm sorry I'm such a hypocrite." She laughs out pathetically with a sniffle, putting her head in between her knees. Alex is in total shock. The happy, free spirited girl who just talked him out of jumping off a ledge, is falling apart. Without hesitation, he scoots closer to her, and wraps his arms around her.
"Hey, it's okay. It's okay." He cooes, stroking her hair. "I know it's hard, but remember what you told me?" He questions, letting go of her, so she can sit up. She does, looking to him, her face stained with tears, but she nods. "You're alive for a reason. If you've had that many near death experiences, and you're still alive, then goddammit, you're definitely here for an important purpose. You may not know it now, but you will soon, I promise." He reassures her, and she smiles at him.
"Thank you so much." She says with a sniffle, smiling slightly.
"It's all good. And you're not a hypocrite, you were just trying to help me. And you did. If it wasn't for you, I'd be dead." He mumbles, looking down. His hair is falling in his eyes, but he doesn't bother to fix it. Acacia looks to him, wiping tears from her eyes.
"Hey Alex?" She whispers, and he looks up.
"Hey Acacia." He whispers back, giving her his lopsided smile. She smiles back.
"Promise to me alive if I keep you alive?" She asks, and he nods, extending his hand. She grabs it, and shakes it.
"Deal." He replies. She leans her head on his shoulder, and the both of them sit there in silence, feeling closer than ever before.
The elevator shaft creaks, and the elevator starts moving upward.
♠ ♠ ♠
ahh so we know acacia's story!!!!and her and alex have a pact now :))
well they didn't have time for alex to tell her his story, but he will soon! don't worry :)
woo i only have 4 more days of school woooo!!! hopefully my updates will be less sporadic now
well thanks for reading!!! tell me what you think?? :))