He nods like that’s understandable. “I meant to ask, but what stage is her cancer? Is she undergoing any current treatment?”
I stare at him.
Since I don’t answer, he glances over at me. “I’m only asking because my family knows a specialist. I know you said you’ve tried everything, and I believe you, but this guy’s been called a miracle worker. He’s always up on cutting edge research and trials. A friend of my mom’s went to him a few years ago when she was almost to stage four and about out of hope. Whatever experimental treatment he got her into, it worked. She made a full recovery and has been cancer-free since. I don’t want to get your hopes up or anything, but if you wanted me to give him a call, maybe he could meet with your mom and see if there’s anything he can do for her.”
My chest feels tight. The number of times I’ve found hope only to have it snatched away after a long, soul-deadening fight that ended in defeat…
I’m afraid to hope again, but it’s impossible not to. It’s a cruel game, but when you want something so badly, you have to grab at it every time it’s dangled.
“Are you serious? She isn’t doing treatments anymore, we’ve pretty much exhausted all our resources and nothing has worked, so she decided to stop putting her body through all of it and just enjoy the time she has left. We still do what we can, of course. The stuff the nutritionist told us to do, like I still make her a cup of matcha tea every morning and stuff like that, but as far as chemo and other treatments… She has pretty much done everything. None of it worked.”
“Well, it’s your call, of course, but if you want me to reach out, I can.”
“She’s immunocompromised at this point, so we try not to go out in public when we don’t have to. Is there any way you could set up a phone or video call first, just to make sure going there wouldn’t be a total waste?”
“Sure, I can ask him.”
Hope wraps around my heart. “That would be amazing, Dare. Thank you so much.”
He looks over at me and smiles faintly. “No problem.”
My heart hammers in my chest as I consider opening all this up again, talking to my mom about it. I know she’s exhausted, but if there’s a chance I could keep her, I have to try. It’s all I want in the world.
I look over at him. “Um… can you also find out how much the treatment would cost? Since the divorce, Mom doesn’t have insurance anymore, and mine is the only income. I’m guessing your family friend probably wasn’t as worried about money. If he thinks there’s a chance it might work, I’ll pay whatever, I just have to figure out how. Maybe I can get another credit card. Most of ours are nearly maxed out. I have a few months left if I’m extremely careful, but… our financial situation isn’t great.”
“You only work part-time, right?”
I nod. “It’s all I can swing while I’m in school and taking care of Mom. I talked to her about dropping out so I can get a second job or go full-time, but she won’t hear it, and honestly… I’d rather spend the time with her now and work after she’s—” My throat closes, not wanting to let the awful words out. “After she’s gone. I already know I’ll have to spend next year working non-stop to put even a small dent in my debt instead of going to college, but that’s fine. I can make more money, but I can’t get more time with Mom.”
“Understandable. Have you considered a side hustle?”
I glance over at him. “Sure. Know of any that pay like $600 for an hour of work?” I joke.
He smirks. “Maybe. Depends on what kind of work you’re willing to do.”
“If there’s a pole involved, it’ll have to wait until next year,” I joke. “Too many germs.”
He cocks an eyebrow like he’s surprised I’d even joke about stripping, but he’s never needed money as desperately as I do, so he can’t understand I’m hardly joking.
When we pull into his parking spot at school today, it seems like there are even more people standing around talking out front.
I didn’t hear from Anae after I showed up with him yesterday, even after that girl probably snapped our picture, but showing up with him a second time is bound to draw even more attention.
“I’ll have my car back after school today, right?” I ask as I pull the latch and shove my car door open.
“I’ll update you at lunch. I should hear back by then.”
“Perfect. Thank you again. I wanted to knee you in the crotch that first night, but you’ve really been a godsend ever since.”