CHAPTER 30
LILY
Days turned into weeks, and Michael and I became inseparable. We never left the apartment. Instead, we holed up watching endless anime and eating ramen like our lives depended on it. We made love and fucked with such insanity, making up for all our lost time.
My body had gotten weaker, but I survived, breathing better.
The new prescription that Dr. Karlfield hooked me up with seemed to be working wonders, but I knew it wasn’t going to last long. Thankfully, Michael didn’t catch on.
But ever since I woke up this morning, I could feel the temporary relief from the drugs was starting to wear thin.
My heart was dying, and nothing was going to save it this time.
“I don’t understand why you don’t want to come,” Mikey moaned, stomping like a little kid as he tightened his hold around me.
“It’s Riana’s twenty-first birthday,” I lied through my teeth. She was already twenty-one, but he didn’t need to know that .
“So?” He raised a brow.
I pinned him with a fake glare. “So she is my best friend, and we are throwing a party for her.” What we were actually doing was having a low-key dinner at mine.
A line formed over his jaw. “By we, you mean you and that pretentious fucker.”
“Michael,” I firmed. “Jack is my friend, remember.”
He exhaled. “Fine. But still, you can come after that.”
“We have a lot to plan. I told you, remember?” The lie slipped past me easily. The boys were going to some event in Miami, and their entire week was filled, much to Mikey’s dismay.
As much as I wanted to join him, I physically couldn’t. My body was giving out, and I was going to admit myself to the clinic for a couple of days to get myself on IV meds. It wasn’t much, but I hoped it would buy me more time.
“Okay.” He rolled his eyes before leaning in for a kiss.
I moaned as his tongue stroked the depths of my mouth. The softness of his lips molded over mine, sending delirious warmth throughout my body.
“That’s it. This is where I fucking draw the line.” A familiar loud voice reached us, making us part.
My brother stood beside us, looking sick, while Evy clutched onto his side with a wide grin as she watched us.
Mikey smirked, tugging me closer to him. “You better get used to it, asshole, because I’m sticking around. Forever .”
Emmie rolled his eyes, ignoring him. Apart from his blatant disgust for Mikey’s antics, my brother lost his arm sling last week and was recovering sooner than anticipated .
“All ready, sir,” Tyler announced, nodding toward the SUV, ready to drop them off at the airport.
Mikey gave me one last sullen hug, followed by my brother, Evy, and Matty who was the last one to join us.
A heavy weight settled my heart as I watched them board.
I was okay, right? Going without a word. It was a decision I made after giving it a lot of thought. Knowing that spending my last days under the scrutiny of my family while being poked and prodded wasn’t something I wanted. But what scared me the most was hope. Even a glimmer of it for me to only fall would kill me just the same. This was for the best. This way, I knew my end and had control over it.
“Wait,” a voice called out just as I turned to the elevators.
Frowning, I spun around and watched wide-eyed as Mikey rushed to me. “What’s…?” My words were caught mid-sentence with a soft, hard kiss. My shock only lasted a second before I kissed him back with the same passion as my knees turned to Jell-O.
“Just wanted to give you one last kiss.” He grinned, backing off as he left me breathless and rooted to the spot. “Keep your phone close, and don’t miss me too much,” he yelled before jumping back into the car.
I blinked as I watched the car disappear, wondering what had just happened.
That man was clearly crazy.
Crazy for me, though.
I couldn’t help but smile at that .
A wave of dizziness hit me as I rose from the couch. It took me a moment to gather myself and take slow steps to the door.
“Jack,” I mumbled as I let him in. “Welcome.” I waved before sitting back on the couch again. It’s been hours since Michael left, and I’d been sitting in the same spot, not having the will to do anything else.
“Lily.” He frowned, placing two full bags of takeout cartons on the table. “You okay?”
I shook my head but didn’t say a thing.
He settled in beside me. “Riana will be here in a few; she texted that she had to tie some things up at the studio.”
I nodded too tired to speak.
“You’re not fine, are you, Lily?” Jack peered at me with concern.
“I’m fine. Just a bad day, I guess.”
He sighed. “When will you be going to the clinic?”
“Tomorrow evening.”
“I’ll be there.”
I mustered a shaky smile. “Thanks. How was your date?”
His grim expression vanished, and a soft smile played on his lips. “We went out twice. The feelings are still there, but we want to take it slow, rather than jump back into it.”
“That’s probably for the best,” I replied. But what the hell did I know about relationships? Mine was sinking before it even started to sail.
It wasn’t long before Riana joined us, and we gathered around the table to eat while she animatedly explained all the gossip from the studio and the new anime they were working on .
The spark that usually lit me up at the mention of anime never came. I hadn’t picked up a pencil in days. If Michael noticed, he never mentioned it.
I swirled the pho with my chopsticks, half listening to their conversation. Nausea swirled in my gut as I tried my hardest to tone it down, but it only kept increasing with each passing moment. A sudden sharp headache jolted my head, and I mumbled an ouch as I squeezed the bridge of my nose with my finger.
“Lily.” I heard Jack’s voice ask somewhere in the distance. “Are you alright?”
I tried to nod, but the pain was too much. In an instant, I felt something hard grip my chest, and a gasp left my lips as the world around me blurred.
Muffled voices were calling out my name but I couldn’t hear a thing as the pain intensified, consuming my entire body.
My vision went blank and I clutched my chest, gasping for the next breath.
But soon everything went dark.
Silence.
And then nothing.