Post by Aaron Xermax on Aug 9, 2005 1:14:32 GMT -5
Somewhere in the Peruvian Andes
"Hey! Slow down, will ya?"
"What's the matter, Pen'? Can't keep up with the sick guy?"
"I thought you were supposed to tire easy?"
"I do, but I took my vitamins today."
"Vitamins, huh? I thought you decided you weren't taking any medication?"
"I'm kidding!" Aaron looked out over the still misty peaks of the Andes, taking a deep breath of the crisp air, casting his mind back three months while Penny caught up:
"Aaron, are you okay? Mike told me after class that you collapsed! What happened?"
"It's cancer, Pen'. Final stages. Bone marrow."
"But why'd they only find it now? Weren't there any signs in the entry medical?"
"Nope. They say it's a rare strain, doesn't show up until it's ready to throw the final punch."
Penny was almost actively trying to fight back tears. "How... long do you have?"
"Six months, at most."
"No treatment?"
"Chemo would apparently only accelerate things... Best to ride it out."
"What are you gonna do now?"
"Well, I'm gonna take finals this semester, then do something really fun and outrageous. I hear rock climbing in Peru is really good this time of year..."
"Are you crazy?"
"What, you don't like the rock climbing idea?"
"Not the idea, you! If I know you, you were planning on going alone, weren't you?"
"Uh, yeah."
"No way, Aaron. I'm going with you."
Aaron saw that Penny was wearing her 'Don't gimme any lip' look, but it was different somehow. Then he realised why: Penny wasn't fighting the tears any more.
"I'm going with you."
"Really Aaron, what's your secret? You've been going all day."
"And I'll bet I'll sleep like a log all night. I dunno, the air here just seems to give me so much energy. Of course, you mustn't underestimate the will to live either. I may only have three months left, but I'm gonna make it the best three months ever."
Penny folded her arms in a mock fit of anger. "How come you were never this upbeat when you were healthy? It took me forever to get you to go to one party!"
"Meh, so I'm not much of a people person. At least, not so many people at the same time..." Aaron looked over at Penny and grinned. "C'mon, the climbing site's not that much farther up the trail."
"Hey, are you sure it's safe to go out? I mean, didn't one of those meteorites crash near here?"
"Nah, the crash site's a good few hundred miles away from here. Besides, the government would've probably evacuated the village by now if they suspected any danger... Hey, is it me, or has the wind picked up?"
"Yeah, it has. And I don't think it's supposed to be coming from this direction either..."
The rumbling came next, and the two students could only watch as the landscape started to disintegrate around them. All of the debris was heading toward what looked like some sort of cave in the distance, drawing ever closer, until they realised that the cave wasn't getting closer, they were being drawn in. And it wasn't a cave at all...
"And I thought the cancer was going to get me..." Aaron smirked.
"This is no time for jokes!" Penny shouted over the ever growing roar. "We've gotta get out of..."
The 'cave' then caught its second wind, and a slurping sound came with the final tug that dragged the two into the darkness.
"Hey! Slow down, will ya?"
"What's the matter, Pen'? Can't keep up with the sick guy?"
"I thought you were supposed to tire easy?"
"I do, but I took my vitamins today."
"Vitamins, huh? I thought you decided you weren't taking any medication?"
"I'm kidding!" Aaron looked out over the still misty peaks of the Andes, taking a deep breath of the crisp air, casting his mind back three months while Penny caught up:
"Aaron, are you okay? Mike told me after class that you collapsed! What happened?"
"It's cancer, Pen'. Final stages. Bone marrow."
"But why'd they only find it now? Weren't there any signs in the entry medical?"
"Nope. They say it's a rare strain, doesn't show up until it's ready to throw the final punch."
Penny was almost actively trying to fight back tears. "How... long do you have?"
"Six months, at most."
"No treatment?"
"Chemo would apparently only accelerate things... Best to ride it out."
"What are you gonna do now?"
"Well, I'm gonna take finals this semester, then do something really fun and outrageous. I hear rock climbing in Peru is really good this time of year..."
"Are you crazy?"
"What, you don't like the rock climbing idea?"
"Not the idea, you! If I know you, you were planning on going alone, weren't you?"
"Uh, yeah."
"No way, Aaron. I'm going with you."
Aaron saw that Penny was wearing her 'Don't gimme any lip' look, but it was different somehow. Then he realised why: Penny wasn't fighting the tears any more.
"I'm going with you."
"Really Aaron, what's your secret? You've been going all day."
"And I'll bet I'll sleep like a log all night. I dunno, the air here just seems to give me so much energy. Of course, you mustn't underestimate the will to live either. I may only have three months left, but I'm gonna make it the best three months ever."
Penny folded her arms in a mock fit of anger. "How come you were never this upbeat when you were healthy? It took me forever to get you to go to one party!"
"Meh, so I'm not much of a people person. At least, not so many people at the same time..." Aaron looked over at Penny and grinned. "C'mon, the climbing site's not that much farther up the trail."
"Hey, are you sure it's safe to go out? I mean, didn't one of those meteorites crash near here?"
"Nah, the crash site's a good few hundred miles away from here. Besides, the government would've probably evacuated the village by now if they suspected any danger... Hey, is it me, or has the wind picked up?"
"Yeah, it has. And I don't think it's supposed to be coming from this direction either..."
The rumbling came next, and the two students could only watch as the landscape started to disintegrate around them. All of the debris was heading toward what looked like some sort of cave in the distance, drawing ever closer, until they realised that the cave wasn't getting closer, they were being drawn in. And it wasn't a cave at all...
"And I thought the cancer was going to get me..." Aaron smirked.
"This is no time for jokes!" Penny shouted over the ever growing roar. "We've gotta get out of..."
The 'cave' then caught its second wind, and a slurping sound came with the final tug that dragged the two into the darkness.