Chapter 28

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

MARGO

Annie pulls me into the bathroom and over to the sink. She grabs a handful of paper towels, wets them, and hands me the wad, and I cover my nose again.

"It's all over you," Annie says, taking my free hand to wipe it clean. "How are you feeling? Do you need to sit down?" She touches my forehead, searching for a fever.

I pinch the bridge of my nose, hoping the pressure will stop the bleeding. My head feels light, and I grasp the sink.

Annie holds on to me. She might be upset, but there isn't an ounce of anger in her eyes, only concern. "I think you need to see the nurse."

"I'll be fine. The bleeding will stop. It always does eventually."

Annie pauses. "Don't tell me this has been happening a lot."

"It's not a big deal."

She shakes her head. "Come with me," she says, marching me right out of the bathroom.

Daniel, who's sitting on the floor, hops up. "Are you okay?" He comes to my side and places shaky hands on my shoulders.

"Help me get her up to the nurse's office," Annie says.

With one hand on the small of my back and the other steadying my arm, Daniel moves. Annie is still on the other side, and together we make slow steps forward.

I hate the looks I'm getting from everyone. I wanted to avoid these looks. I was already known as the sick girl here once; I don't want to be known as that again. I'm so much more than that. It's not how I want to be remembered. Thankfully, the warning bell rings throughout the hallway and most of the kids run off to class.

After a few minutes of awkward stumbling, we make it to the office. The secretary gasps and jumps out of her seat when I walk in. I know I look bad, but not that bad.

"Margo needs to see the nurse," Annie says.

"Of course," she says. She runs over to one of the many doors and knocks on it. "Ms. Peters? Someone is here to see you."

Ms. Peters opens the door, revealing a room with two cots. On the other side of the room is a sink and Ms. Peters's desk. Without hesitation she rushes to my side. "Oh my. What happened?"

"It's just a nosebleed," I mumble through the paper towels.

She ushers us into the room and has me sit on one of the cots. Then she asks me to lower my hand so she can see. "It's still bleeding, but I don't think it's quite as bad."

Daniel and Annie stand off to the side, not wanting to make eye contact or touch, but at the same time, neither one wants to leave. I'm not used to seeing them in the same room. It's like my two worlds are colliding .

Ms. Peters walks over to the sink and gets some fresh paper towels. She also grabs a wet wipe, which she hands to me when she comes back. "Do you want me to call a parent to come pick you up?"

"I'll be okay."

"Dear, your shirt is covered in blood."

I look like I'm part of a crime scene. Red splotches pepper the front of my blouse and there's even a spot or two on my pants. "Oh."

"Do you have a change of clothes?" she asks.

"No." The only reason I ever had extra clothes at school was back when I was in PE class. That was freshman year.

"Well, you could look in the lost-and-found bin to see if there's something in there that fits."

"Margo, you should call Mama," Annie says. "This is bad. You might be..." She can't even say what's on her mind. "You need to go to the doctor right away. They need to run tests to make sure you're okay."

I shake my head. "No, I don't. It'll be fine."

Annie tears up. "It's not fine! You're bleeding!" She marches over, inspecting my arm. "You're bruising too. The cancer might be back. They said it could relapse."

I grab Annie's arm to stop her from frisking me, searching for more bruises. "I've already been to the doctor."

Her lips part, and she catches her breath. There's a sense of betrayal in her posture. Her back stiffens. "What?"

"Annie," I say, pausing. I'm scared to tell her my secret. Once Annie knows, there's no more pretending. There's no denying it. This will be the real beginning of the end. "I'm sick."

She shakes her head, a tear spilling onto her cheek. "No. You aren't. You're a liar! You lie about everything!" She steps back, but I don't let go. I'm not letting her run away this time. She closes her eyes so she doesn't have to look at me. "I don't believe you."

I glance between Ms. Peters and Daniel. "Could you give us a minute please?"

"I think it's about time to grab a coffee from the break room," Ms. Peters says. Daniel is glued to the wall, but she pats his shoulder. "Let's get you a pass for class."

He's ready to protest, but then he sees my pleading eyes and reluctantly follows Ms. Peters out of the room.

"I'm not lying," I say.

She shakes my hand off her. "Then why didn't you tell me?"

"I've been trying to figure out the best way, and I couldn't. Especially not after everything that happened with Daniel."

She pulls at her hair, her face turning red. "Do you really think I care about that right now! How long have you known?"

"I found out about a month ago." I can't believe time is moving this fast. I want it to slow down so I can drag out every second. "I was going to tell you."

Her tears flow freely down her face, and her shoulders start to shake. "How sick are you?"

This is the moment I've been waiting for. All I have to say are two words, but my throat closes up, and I start to cry too. I can't speak. Instead, I shake my head. It's the fear we always dreaded, the unspeakable possibility of me dying.

She turns away from me, covering her face with her hands. Her sobs fill the room and tear through me like a knife.

She knows.

I hop off the bed and touch her arm. "I'm so sorry, Annie. I'm sorry I didn't tell you. "

"How could you not tell me!" She's a volcano of rage and a puddle of sadness all at the same time. She faces me again, shaking. "We tell each other everything."

My lip wobbles. "I already hurt you enough with Daniel. I wanted to help you, but I made it worse. And I feel really guilty."

She blinks back tears. "I don't care about what happened with Daniel right now. I care about you!"

"But you should hate me."

She leaps forward, latching on to me and hugging me close like I'm about to dissolve into thin air if she doesn't. My heart leaps when she wraps her arms around me. I feel whole again.

"Don't say that."

"But it's true."

She shakes her head again. Her cries bubble out. "You can't leave me, Margo."

I know.

But I don't have a choice.

I hold her close. "I missed you."

That only makes her cry harder.

Annie took me home.

I wasn't about to call Mama because I didn't know how long she'd be at Mrs. Jackman's. We called Papa instead to get permission to leave school early. Our drive home was quiet. There was no music. No talking.

We pull into the driveway and sit there. Neither one of us is ready to move. It might only be nine o'clock in the morning, but I think we're both exhausted. Even though Annie says she's not upset about the whole Daniel thing, I find it hard to believe. I think there's unresolved tension, but she's afraid to say anything.

"How are you feeling now?" she whispers.

My nose isn't bleeding anymore, but my head hurts and my outfit is trashed. "I'm okay."

She nods, still not moving. She blankly stares at our garage. "Do you really like him?"

There's no point in hiding anything. She deserves to know it all. "I couldn't stand him at first. He made my blood boil."

There's the faintest laugh from the driver's seat.

"But he's easy to talk to, and when I'm with him, I feel normal. He makes me feel like a normal teenager."

Annie rests her head back on the seat and looks over. "Tell me about him."

I fidget with my hands. I've wanted to talk to her about him in the way sisters talk about their crushes for so long, but I'm nervous. I don't want to make her more upset. "He likes cats, he writes in books instead of reading them, and he has a crooked smile."

She cringes. "Everyone knows dogs are better, writing in books is practically criminal, and has he considered braces? "

I smile. "Really?"

"Tell me more. Ruin the illusion. I'm ready," she says, relaxing into her seat.

I try to think about reasons why Annie and Daniel wouldn't work well together. "He doesn't say much, so you'd probably have to start all of the conversations."

She sucks in a breath. "Completely unacceptable. Next."

"He likes to carry my bags."

She shakes her head. "It's the twenty-first century. I can carry my own bags, thank you very much."

I laugh.

"Illusion broken," she says.

Do I really think she's moved on that fast? No, but I appreciate what she's trying to do.

She stares at me for a minute, and then she says, "Did you know when you talk about him your face turns pink?"

I pull my bangs in front of my face, but they're too short to hide my blushing.

"Does he make you happy?"

I lower my hands from my hair and nod.

"Then do me a favor: let yourself like him, and don't feel guilty about it," she says, eyes watering again. She bites her lip. "I want you to know what it's like to fall in love. Everyone deserves that." She takes a breath. "I don't want you to miss your chance because of me."

"Do you really mean that?" I ask.

"Yeah. Don't hold back. If you're only going to fall in love once, make sure you do it right. Don't worry about me. I'll get my own love story one day."

"It'll be like a movie," I say.

"You know it. My standards are high after reading so many romance novels," she teases .

I smile. "As they should be."

She smiles back. "I missed you."

My heart squeezes. "I missed you too."

She sighs and reaches for the door. "Let's go inside and get you changed before Mama sees you and goes ballistic."

I'm sore and tired. Everything from my hands to legs ache, but I couldn't be happier. I know Annie and I have a lot more to mend, but this is a start.

I check my phone. There are a few messages from Daniel asking how I am and how my conversation with Annie went.

"He wants to see you, doesn't he?" Annie asks.

I don't know how to respond. I'm not used to her talking about us so easily.

"Tell him to come over after school. We might as well get used to having him around," she says as she wanders into the kitchen.

I freeze. "Really?" I squeak.

She grabs a bag of tortilla chips and pops one in her mouth. "I plan on spending the day with you. Don't make us fight over you, Margo."