STICK IN THE VINE

Chapter 4

Dr Henry Taylor and I examine CT scan and MRI, that you're dead doesn't mean you'll know everything, I mean, I'm a ghost not a god. All I see is a film with white and dark patches. I get bored and take a joy ride round the room, leaving Shawty and Nora to keep their stare at the doctor. I guess celebrities have a way of sticking their affairs into yours that you get to remember them, even when you're dead. On a lath against the wall are pictures of Dr Henry Taylor and Leonardo Dicarprio ,Jennifer Lopez , Hugh Jackman, Wayne Rooney, and a final picture of him and a little kid on hockey suit, I guess his son because Dr Taylor bent right beside him, and the kid's lips path in laugh,teeth showing inside the helmet.

Dr Taylor drops the film on the table, adjusts his glasses.

" the scans show an irregular liver mass with protrusive enhancement at the liver surface. Miss Rawlings, how well do you eat? "

Shawty sniffs,

"Been taking apples lately "

"Just apples?"

"Yes"Shawty says

"Loss of appetite uhm"

Moments like these are when I wish I could unhear things, go on to static and never to be remembered. It is back. Nora gasps, Shawty didn't flinch, her face as steady as though she never heard what the doctor had said.

"What is that doctor?" Nora asks in a shaky voice

The doctor presses forward, looks at both Shawty and Nora

"Until we get slides of it and take for pathology, I can't say, there are different posibilities to liver cancer. "

Nora's eyes enlarge in their sockets, her jaw drops a little. The air in t around her becomes viscous, a thousand questions chalk up to her throat. Fighting hard to release them one after the other. She opens her mouth to speak

" is it possible it's Angiosarcoma?" Shawty speaks up finally, saving Nora from the stress that'd built up around her face and features.

Dr Taylor takes a deep draught,

" Liver Angiosarcoma is very rare, the common one we see is Liver Hemangioma. We can only say possibilities until we run further tests."

"Could this be why Flora had been barking?" Nora says, looking at the doctor.

"What?"Dr Taylors says with a crinkle on his forehead

"She has a dog that barks at her"

Dr taylor relaxes.

"Some dogs perceive ailments in the body. And she wasn't barking at miss Rawlings, she was barking at the cancer in her. We heard of dogs that attack their caregivers who were later diagnosed of an ailment. They weren't attacking them, they were trying to protect them against the ailment".Oh my, Nora and I say at the same time.Shawty is trying to keep her composure, but what she just heard about Flora disturbs that. Her shoulders slounch a little, rubbing her elbows with the tip of her fingers.

" is it curable?" Nora asks, holding Shawty firmly by the hand.

It is , it should , the woman from Africa foretold she'll fall in love, blessed with the womb, she'd be fine right? Tell me doctor.

"There are available treatments pending on which cancer it turns out to be, hepatic ligation, adjuvant chemotherapy. "

Oh christ, this isn't good.

"Can I have the film?" Shawty says

Dr Taylor passes the film to her, We lock heads to look at it. Shawty rises from her seat,stretches her hand in a hands shake at the Doctor, who also rise from his seat.

" I'll get back to you doctor. Thank you very much".

We get to the car is parked , sitting in, I glance at shawty who is looking out the window in her dark spectacles at an elderly woman who is pushed gently on a wheel chair by a younger lady of about Shawty's age.Another woman with a bandaged head fondling with the ruff of a cat on her laps, sitting on a pew under a Oak tree.Smiling heartily, like the cat is the only good thing she has left and she's ready to fight through for it . Nora chants on , on the phone, looking out at her side of the window.

A book and pen floats up , edging between the window and Shawty's face. Shawty winds lower, a girl in patient's wear, head shaved but growing in small chops of blonde here and there ;now stands at shawty's view.

" Can I have your autograph? She says in a thin pale voice, eyes just as Shawty's, watery blue. Shawty stares at the girl briefly, surprised as to how the little girl was able to recognise her even in the dark large spectacles. Sometimes you see children and see a younger mirror of yourself, naive but yet knows what they want. Shawty collects the book-The enormous Crocodile and signs on it.

"Thanks"She says, leaving.

Shawty takes off her glasses"Wait,wait, what's your name sweetie?"Shawty asks. The girl turns and holds the book tightly to her chest like its going to be grappled form her..

"Pamela. Pamela Johnson"she answers in her fragile voice.

"What's wrong with you Pamela?"

The girl looks down at her toes,

"Dad said I have leukemia" She looks up at Shawty, maybe wanting to catch the kind of pitiable expression she'd always received from those that have asked her in the past.Before Shawty can speak, the girl's dad comes around in knickers and white T-shirt.

"Oh, Shawty Rawlings !"He enthuses, scooping his daughter to balance between his waist and arm.

"Pamela's a huge fan of yours" He says.

" I know, she told me, right?" Shawty winks at Pamela, and the girl grins.

"She's strong "Shawty adds

"Yes she is." He says, looking at pamela.

"Uh, got to go, she has to see the doctor, bye" He turns to take his leave. Pamela turns behind her dad, Shawty waving her and she waving back.

"Bye".Shawty whispers.

Nora clicks off the phone, " who are those?" She asks nudging towards Pamela's dad. Carl starts the car on Shawty's request.

"New friends".Shawty says.Nora shrugs, clicks on her ipad.

"When are you planning to begin treatment?"Nora asks.Shawty purses her lips.

" I will, very soon. I find a solution "Shawty says.

"Shawty you should begin..." Nora urges

" I will be fine, Do you have the prescriptions with you? "

"Yes, it's here " Nora answers in a low voice.

" And send a message to Alex Cornwell . Tell him we'd see him by Monday." Shawty says, looking out of the window.

When what you're going to do shrouds what you're meant to do.I perfectly understand Shawty, the feeling. You feel doubt but don't show it, you want to be left alone. You don't the luxury of being alone;at least not at this moment in this car.

"Carl? "Shawty says

Wait! Is she going...

"Yes ma'am"

Shawty asks him to stop car. She steps out, Nora confused, also steps out. She asks Carl to come out of the car. The two of them stand, looking bewildered as she slides behind the wheel.

"I need to get somewhere real quick, I will back soon, you can have the day off"

"Where are you going?"Nora screams as She zooms off. The clouds are low, swimming past the broad skyline.

Shawty plays Edsheeran-Bloodstream. It got to a point I thought Edsheeran sang purposely for Shawty. She plays his songs pending on how she wants to feel.I like them, but right now I feel like fading away as the world around this car crumbles .

Shawty jams her hands against the steering wheel, driving at Eighty miles per hour, running fast against the world.But the world is like a thredmill.You run fast, it remains stationary, you run slow, it's still there. You'll always be the one to give up, leave-just as I left , for another person to use .So careful friend, the cops are everywhere.