All I Need - A.D. Justice
CHAPTER ONE
Rod
The Past
The truth today is the same as it was back when we were kids. There’s not much I wouldn’t do to protect my little sister.
Life put that sentiment to the ultimate test just a few months before I turned twenty-one. Everything changed during what would normally be a time of celebration—my senior year in college—when I could go on an all-night bar crawl with my friends. Well, legally, anyway. I was looking forward to my graduation the following spring and making plans for a future of my own.
“Rod, there’s something I need to talk to you about.” Mom pushed a chair out from under the kitchen table with her foot and motioned for me to sit.
“You know, in the entire history of the world, no wanted conversation ever started with those words.” I sighed heavily and plopped down in the chair. Yes, I was the typical twenty-year-old guy who had better things to do and more exciting places to be in what little spare time I had. The talk she wanted to have stood between my almighty plans and me.
The sad smile on her face didn’t give me any comfort, but I sat to hear what she had to say. Arguing would’ve only further delayed my departure. If I wanted to get away anytime soon, I had to put my plans on the back burner and take it like a man.
“There’s no way easy way to say this, so I’ll just tell you the same way I was told.” She took a deep breath, then blew it out slowly. “I have stage four ovarian cancer. The doctor said it’s already advanced past the point of stopping it, Rod.”
"I don’t understand. Have you been sick and didn’t tell me?” My head was spinning. How did I miss the signs?
“I’ve been having some medical problems for a while now. Nothing specific that screamed, ‘Hey Debbie, you have cancer.’ I’ve had a variety of symptoms I thought were all separate—just the result of working too much, not eating right, and not getting enough sleep. Turns out, I should’ve considered all the symptoms were related… a lot sooner than I did.”
“Mom.” I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to think of something intelligent and comforting to say. But that’s not what happened when my mom announced she was dying. I couldn’t think straight, and the thoughts swirling in my head were all terrible. “What… what’s next? What are they going to do about it?”
She shook her head and pinched her lips together. “Nothing, son. There’s nothing they can do now to cure me because it has already spread to my spleen.”
"How long?” I couldn’t make myself look at her face at that moment. Asking the question was almost more than I could manage.
“We’re looking at a year at the most, May be less than that. Rod, I know this is a lot to put on you and I’m so sorry. You’ve carried such a heavy load on your shoulders since the night your dad left.”
Her words finally sank in, forcing me to stop staring at the floor. “Wait—what? Why are you apologizing to me? You’re the one who has cancer. We’ll go to another doctor for a second opinion. Chemotherapy. Surgery. Whatever they need to do. This is about saving you.”
“This is about you living your own life and enjoying it while you’re young. I’ve given this a lot of thought, and I think it’s best if your dad’s parents take guardianship of Juliana when I become too sick to care for her. I wish my parents were still here to help both of you.”
“Stop talking like that. And Dad’s parents? Really? There’s no way I’ll let that happen, Mom. Juliana will never go live with them. They’ll try to shove Dad down her throat every day. I’ll take care of her.”
“How are you going to be a mother, father, and brother to your sister, and finish college at the same time? Your future is just as important as Juliana’s.”
“I’ll finish college. I’ve been working on several new apps I think will be enormous hits and will make a ton of money. When I release them, you’ll have the best medical care available. You’ll get well and we will all still be a family, Mom. No one is going anywhere.”
Any other scenario wouldn’t work because I couldn’t imagine my life without the two people I loved the most in it. The news Mom laid on me knocked the breath out of me