Covering the Carolinas (44 page)

“
Sunshine, I want you to
listen to me. I’ve lived a great life. I have you, and you keep my
world spinning. No matter what happens tomorrow, we will keep on
keepin’ on. God won’t give us more than we can bear, but if the
doctor says he’s got this, then there’s no reason to get yourself
worked up. You are the strongest girl I know, so quit worrying, and
let’s see what tomorrow holds.” Just like that, Grandaddy shoots it
straight, and I know he’s telling the
truth
.

After we finish eating, we enjoy the Atlanta Braves
on TV before going to bed. “Gosh, we just need to turn ’em off.
This is horrible!” he says, and I giggle.

“
Now, you know you love them, even if they
aren’t hittin’ much this year. We’ve gotta go to a game this
summer. Whatcha think?” I say.

“
I think that sounds like a plan, and if that
pitcher starts throwing like a pansy, I’m gonna tell
’em.”

“
Night, Grandaddy,” I say as I continue to
giggle down the hall.

Once I’m inside my room, the
silence allows doubt to seep back into my mind, and I listen to my
favorite Miranda Lambert album on my iPod. As I place my earbuds
into my ears, I turn up the volume and crawl into bed.
Somewhere
between “Me and Charlie Talking” and “Mama,
I’m Alright,” I fall asleep.

Sometime within the night, I pull the earbuds from
my ears and pull the covers snuggly up to my chin. When the alarm
sounds before dawn, I groggily make my way out of the covers and
place my feet onto the cool wooden floor. Today begins like any
other day, but it’s different in the same. I make my rounds on the
farm, but instead of rushing to school, I move as slow as a snail
toward Cleveland Hematology and Oncology.

Emmett

When Raegan drives away, it is almost as if she is
running from something. I try to brush it off, but I can’t. There’s
something that takes over when you care about someone. It’s
something that makes you want to move the biggest mountain to make
everything better for that person.

As I begin to walk back inside, Mr. Lowery meets me
in the driveway, yet again.

“
We’ve gotta stop meetin’
this way,” he says
with a smile, but the smile
soon fades when he sees the worry in my eyes.

“
Is she okay?” I question.

“
She will be. Just know when she
cares about someone, she doesn’t let them go, no matter what it
might look
like.” He doesn’t say anything else, but
that leaves the wheels spinning in my head. I’m not sure exactly
what he’s talking about, but I’m going to find out. I’m certain
that Cole knows exactly what’s going on. I make my way up to his
room, but when I hear the shower running, I know I’m going to have
to wait to see what is going on with Raegan.

Chapter 22

Raegan

“
Sunshine, you barely ate,”
Grandaddy
says.

“
I’m not really hungry,” I respond as I move
the eggs around my plate. He leaves it at that. As he glances down
at his watch, I know time is ticking like a damn bomb about to
explode.

“
I guess we better get going,” he says. We
walk to his truck, and I climb in the passenger seat. The ride to
the doctor’s office isn’t that far, but when we pull into the
parking lot, and I see the words written on the side, my insides
begin to quiver. “Sunshine, it’s gonna be fine. We’ll be outta here
in no time.” I smile, and we exit the truck.

The front doors slide open as we
near the entrance, and the smell of sterilization takes over my
nose.
Yuck! Why do all doctors’ offices
have to smell like a crazy kinda clean?
I
walk with Grandaddy to the receptionist, and sh
e
points him toward the lab.

“
Sunshine, I’ll be right
back. Just wait out here,” he says, and I nod as I take a seat and
watch
The View
on TV.
At least it takes my mind off
where I am at the moment. Whoopi Goldberg is freakin’
hilarious!
After they finish, Grandaddy
comes out to join me.

His arm is covered with a piece of
nursing tape and a cotton ball. “It didn’t hurt. No worries,” he
assures me as he glances up at the TV. “Gosh darnit! We missed
Kelly this mornin’. You know, that sho
w was so much
better with Regis.” My Grandaddy
is always
honest.

After about
fifteen
minutes, the nurse calls him back. I look at him, waiting for the
okay to follow. He reaches out his hand, and I stand as we walk
back to the exam room. The nurse checks his vital signs and tells
him Dr. Charles will be in shortly. While we wait, we don’t say
much, and I can’t quit messing with my nails.

When a light knock taps on the door, I stop
fidgeting and put on a brave face. Dr. Charles is a middle-aged,
slightly overweight man with a thick Southern drawl.

“
Mr. Lowery,” he states as he shakes his hand,
and then he turns to me as Grandaddy introduces me. “Nice to meet
you, Raegan,” he says before taking a seat on the little round
mobile stool.

He looks at the chart in his hands
for a minute before he places it onto the small desk. The look on
his face is hard to read, and the wait is killing me. I just want
to scream for him to tell us already
.

“
Mr. Lowery.” He stops speaking because
Grandaddy asks him to call him Dover. “Dover, when we met last
week, we discussed your options. When people reach a certain age,
their white blood cell count can change drastically without any
reason. It’s extremely common.”

“
Yes, you said basically a pill would fix
it.”

“
Correct.” He pauses.
“Dover, your blood work this morning shows something
different.”
Different? Different as
in good or bad?
“Your white blood cell
count isn’t like the previous type of leukemia we were discussing.
Instead, it is Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Dover, I hate to have to
tell you this, but it’s an aggressive type of cancer.”

My world completely stops
as I look at my grandaddy’s face. A look of worry and anger
engulf him. He tries to remain calm, but there’s no use.

“
Doc, I thought you said a pill would fix
this? I don’t have
time for this,” he says
with aggravation in his tone.

“
Dover, I understand, but
you have one major factor going for you.” Grandaddy looks at him
and waits. “Other than your white blood cell count, you are
healthy. You don’t have high blood pressure or cholesterol. You
take a vitamin every day and nothing else. You are in excellent
shape, and with that being said, I believe you will do well with a
treatment program geared for younger
adults.”

Grandaddy looks from me to the doctor. “Okay, tell
me how this is going to work.” Dr. Charles explains the different
treatment options to Grandaddy. I try to listen, but my world is
spinning out of control.

“
Raegan. Raegan,” Grandaddy
says as
my mind continues to race.

“
Sorry, Grandaddy,” I say, completely
oblivious to the conversation they had been engaged in after I
realized chemotherapy was involved.

“
Do you understand what I’m agreeing to?” he
asks.

“
Yes, you’re gonna take a very strong type of
chemotherapy,” I tell him, and both he and Dr. Charles’ expression
changes.

“
No, Raegan, I’m not
going
to take any treatment.” Right then anger
flares within my soul. I stand and walk out of the exam room and
straight toward the truck. To say I’m mad is an
understatement.
How can he do this to
me?
How can he leave me when I’m already
alone? He can’t give up. I need him.
I
open the truck door, climb inside, slam the door, and scream to the
top of my lungs. Not that it helps take away the
pain,
but at least I feel better. I replace my screams with
uncontrollable sobs, and I don’t even realize we are on our way
back home.

As we pull up to the house, I push away the tears.
I’m furious with my grandaddy, but I know deep down he has a reason
for everything. When he puts the truck into park, he turns to look
at me.

“
Sunshine, I know you don’t understand, but I
did what I thought was right. You are almost an adult, and I’ve
lived a good life, but after you walked out of that room, I
realized I needed to try for you. So, I’m going to try. I’m gonna
try for you, Sunshine.” Instantly, my fear is replaced by hope. I
grab Grandaddy and hug him, never wanting to let him go.

Emmett

I pull my phone from my pocket, again. Not a word
from Raegan. I hope everything is okay. From not hearing anything
from her last night, and her not being at school, I think I’m going
to go crazy.

When I make my way to the table
for lunch, I scan the cafeteria to see if she is with
Jordyn.
I realize quickly she’s not when I see Jordyn
walk inside alone and take a seat beside Ridge.

“
Have you heard from Raegan this mornin’?” I
ask.

“
Just earlier to say she was gonna be late.
I’m sure it’s nothin’,” she implies.

As I take out my phone and begin to text her, I see
her making her way toward our table. She sees me and smiles. I
stand to meet her as she approaches.

“
I was startin’ to wonder ’bout you,” I
say.

“
Nothin’ to worry ’bout. You know, I’ve never
understood why doctors want us to be on time, but yet they aren’t,”
she says, and that is the truth. “So, what’s been goin’ on this
mornin’?”

“
Nothin’ much, except I’ve
missed you like crazy,” I say as I pull her in for a hug, and if I
didn’t know any better, she is holding on to me
like her life depends on it, and then she tells
me she missed me more. I could listen to her
sweet words from now until forever, and it wouldn’t ever get
old.

After lunch, I walk her to class.
I observe how she always speaks to everyone that looks her way, no
matter if they are popular or
not. She is never too
busy for anyone, and when I have to leave her in the doorway of her
next class, I stare as she takes her seat. When she catches me, I
grin and turn to head to class.

Chapter 23

Raegan

When Emmett tells me he missed me
like crazy, I feel like the biggest liar around. I can’t believe I
made it to school, let alone not look like complete crap, and here
he is telling me he missed me.
What kind
of person keeps a secret like this? But, it’s what Grandaddy wants,
and that’s what he will get. I always keep my promises, and this
one might eat me alive.

On the way to third block, it
seems as if everyone is looking my way. I always speak to everyone,
but today, it’s about to drain the life out of me. I’d have loved
to have stayed home and spent time with Grandaddy, but he insisted
I go on to school. After he told me he was going to at least try
one type of treatment, I knew I could face
today, and
I’m glad
to know the only face I wanted to
see was waiting for me to arrive.

When the bell rings for the end of
the day, I hurry to practice, but not before calling the house to
see if Grandaddy is okay. He is out of breath, but it is from
trying to grab the phone
in time before it
quit ringing. He seems to be his normal self, but deep down, I
can’t help but wonder if he is as scared as me.

After practice, I head home, and
our night is uneventful except for one conversation. Grandaddy and
I talk in depth about what his plan of action will be, and when it
will start. He has chosen to take a form of oral chemotherapy,
instead of the IV type, for now. He wants to see if it will help
lower his white blood cell count, and Dr. Charles feels this is a
good way to start. He begins taking the pills tomorrow, and I can’t
help but wish that Cole were back working on the farm so he could
keep a check on him.
Cole. I think I’ll
call him later.

Once the dishes are done, I get ready for another
day of school. When I’m ready to call it a night, I call Cole. He
answers on the first ring.

“
Hello?” he answers, and I now realize I
should have called him earlier.

“
Hey, Cole, you’re not asleep, are you?” I
ask, suddenly regretting calling him since he’s not recuperated
yet.

“
Nah, I’m starting to feel
more
like myself, but Dad and Emma are
insisting I take it easy. I meant to call you earlier, but didn’t
know if Emmett was with you or anything.”

“
I haven’t seen him since school. Has
Grandaddy called you yet?” I ask.

“
Actually, he came by after
you went to school. I should have called you earlier, but I know
you like your time to sort out things,” he says. “Are you okay,
Rae? I mean,
really
okay?” There is tenderness in his
voice.

I try to force back the tears, but
they stream down my face as I speak as honestly as possible. “Cole,
he wasn’t even gonna try to get better. How could he do that to me?
I’d be lost without
him, and that’s exactly what
would’ve happened if he didn’t try.”