Where is her career going? Does she even have one anymore? For the past few months her life has been just….ordinary. Making breakfast for kids…grocery shopping, cooking, house chores. How did this happen? The only match she’s been in lately is her wrestling with her own selfishness, wishing against fate that Diana would be alright so that she and Butch could resume their own lives again. Life is so unfair, she thinks. If it wasn’t for having Butch in her life, the only man she’s ever truly loved, she wouldn’t be in this situation. The old Wisdom would have walked away. The old Wisdom would still be alone. For one of the first times in her life she is starting to realize that love comes at a high price. She wants to go to Australia for the tour, but doesn’t want to leave Butch alone, nor does she know how to tell him that she already bought her flight tickets. She’s snapped from her train of thought as two doctors greet them in the lobby. Butch lifts up gently, as not to awaken Sarah and nestles her back into the chair.
(Wisdom): Is she ok?
(Doctor): She’s fine for now, she’s resting comfortably.
(Butch): So what is it now?
A rather upset Butch lashes out at the doctors. Wisdom puts her hand on his arm and gives him a “relax” look as the doctor clears his throat.
(Doctor): She has pneumonia. It’s quite common in lung cancer patients. It is likely that she’s been suffering from symptoms of coughing, or fevers for the last week and dismissed it for simply being sick. Chemotherapy does normally assist in prevention but as your know Ms. Parker has declined treatment.
A deep, heavy, almost rumbling sigh escapes from Butch as he puts his hands on the top of his head.
(Wisdom): Isn’t there anything you can do though?
(Doctor): There is very little we can do to be honest. You have to understand that Ms. Parker is at the beginning of Stage IV lung cancer. The tumors have grown larger and metastasized. All we can do is treat the symptoms that she is very likely to experience from now until…..
(Butch):Until what?
Again Butch lashes out at the doctors, knowing that the next words out of his mouth would “until she dies.”
(Wisdom): Butch!
Wisdom takes Butch by the arm and pulls him to the side, they whisper in speech to one another and he turns around slamming his fist into the wall leaving a hole before he stomps of to attempt to cool off. Wisdom turns back to the doctors, one of which who was heading to the nurse station to calls security, but stops when Butch leaves.
(Wisdom): I’m sorry we’ll pay for the damages…please go on.
(Doctor): I understand, but as I was saying her symptoms will continue and they will vary as the cancer spreads. It’s starting to reach her bones where she will certainly experience pain, usually in the backbone. She will experience difficulty walking or standing for periods of time. Repeated bouts of pneumonia are not unlikely, alongside coughing with heavy mucus. As she reaches the end of the disease, anemia, weight loss, and fatigue will set it at increased levels.
(Wisdom): And then she’s gone!
(Doctor): Yes ma’am.
Wisdom just wants to scream. Tears well up in her eyes, but again they are not all for Diana. The guilt returns as she starts becoming angry. Angry that Diana is sick and has forced her lifestyle to change. Angry that the complete attention of her lover is drawn from her, and that he’s become a reclusive ball of anger and frustration. She looks back up, managing a slight smile and nod at the doctors who nods back and walks away. She looks behind her at the two sleeping children. She takes a deep breath and exhales reaching into her purse and pulls out her Quantas Airline tickets and rips them in half just tossing them towards the trashcan. She kneels down and pulls Jake up in one arm and Sarah in the other and heads out of the waiting are to find Butch. Just as she exits the doors Butch re-enters from the opposite side missing them by seconds. He returns to the waiting area to find them gone. He looks down to find bits of paper where they were and picks them up seeing that they were tickets to Australia with Wisdom and HWA’s name on them. As if it’s becoming a habit, he sighs deeply again crumpling the papers in his hands and tossing them into the trashcan that he dents in with a kick as he leaves to go catch up with Wisdom and his niece and nephew.
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