𝓒𝓵𝓪𝓻𝓪

"How long?" I asked, hoping Violet had an answer.

She didn't respond at first, sitting quietly on the couch, fiddling with the hem of her shirt. "... I don't know. I assume for a while now."

My thoughts drifted back to Mini. She'd been coughing, but she assured me it was only a bug. Could that have been a sign? Was I too blind to see it then?

I put my head in my hands. Maybe if I had known earlier, I could have taken her to a doctor - someone who studied cancers.

Why did I feel like this was my fault? I sniffed, glancing at Violet from her seat on the couch, her head down as if she was embarrassed to meet my gaze.

It had been a few days since she found out herself. I wondered if she felt guilty for not telling me that very day?

"Have... Have they been doing any treatment at all?" I asked.

She shook her head, "I don't know. Dominic didn't tell me much, and it slipped my mind."

I nodded, thinking about calling Mini myself or even Alan, though that thought alone made me nervous.

With nothing more to say, though my head felt like it was spinning, I went to my room and collapsed on the bed, the old frame creaking underneath my weight.

I lay there, closing and opening my eyes, trying to keep the tears at bay and shift my mind to something else when my phone chimed.

It startled me at first, and after a hesitant moment, I reached over and grabbed it off the bedside table. Maybe Violet needed something?

But when I turned on the phone, I saw a message from an unknown number.