Chapter 127: It's Killing Me

“I don’t care!” I shouted over her. “Just stop it! Stop telling me who to be. I can’t breathe under your rules anymore. It's exhausting! It's killing me! I can’t—” My voice cracked completely. For a moment, the only sound in the room was the rhythmic beeping of the monitor, steady and loud. “Oh God.” She cried, her shoulders shaking. “What have I done?” Then I looked at her. Her frail body sunk into the hospital bed, her skin pale, her eyes rimmed red, her chest rising shallowly with every breath. She looked so small. So breakable. And guilt hit me like a wave. God, what was I doing? She was sick. She was fighting leukemia. And here I was, screaming, ripping open wounds that neither of us had the strength to close. I was practically killing her quicker. I pressed a shaky hand to my mouth, trying to steady myself. “I’m sorry,” I whispered, my voice raw. “I shouldn't have done that.” She sniffled, fumbling for a handkerchief on the bedside table. “No,” she said softly, dabbing at her eye