HER LAST WISH Chapter 83

(Moremi)

Zeemah Writes 📝

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“She has adrenocortical carcinoma, a type of adrenal cancer” Doctor Matt announced.

“Adrenal cancer?” Phil asked, her stomach burning, not from the tantrum Layla’s friends just threw nor the yelling she just received from them for keeping something as serious as that, but from the fact that she had been right. She hadn’t known it was Adrenal cancer of course but she had been quite sure it wasn’t leukemia.

“Didn’t you say it was leukemia?” Dan faced Phil; his facial expression diverse from the onset. With how calmly he just spoke to her, one would never have imagined he was yelling just some moments ago.

“That was the doctor’s diagnosis over a year ago” Phil said.

“That’s wrong, she doesn’t have leukemia. I bet the doctor assumed it was, because her family has a history of the disease.” Doc Jude who is the Keyes personal doctor said.

“So, what is Adrenal cancer, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of it” Rylan sighed, rubbing his forehead with his palm.

His mum walked into the doctor’s office handing everyone a bottle of water. They were all burned out and haven’t as much sat since Layla went unconscious. Their eyes ached with tears that stopped just moments ago, it was only after the doctor assured them Layla is going to be fine that the turmoil stopped.

Doctor Matt, a surgical oncologist who had detected Layla’s cancer cleared his throat. “It’s a rare cancer that begins in one or both of the small triangular glands located at the top of the kidneys. Adrenocortical carcinoma is the most common form of adrenal cancer and it’s usually not detected until the tumor is quite large.” He paused. “I bet she must have been experiencing the symptoms for long because after we performed biopsy on her, we discovered it has grown malignant, it’s larger than five to six centimeters and has automatically turned cancer”

“Just because of a doctor’s misdiagnosis and infrequent checkup” Dan swallowed hard, never having to maintain his composure this much, he was angry, sad and scared and he’s never felt like screaming out his lungs as much as he did now.

What if Layla had actually died because of this, his heart almost left his body when they thought she was dead. She was dead cold and wasn’t breathing when they got outside and it was only later her breathing started getting faint.

“What’s the survival rate?” Anne spoke up for the first time.

“Well, the relative survival rate is five years but we can’t say specifically, we can’t predict what will happen in any particular person’s case. It’s also based on how far the cancer has spread” Doctor Matt said.

“How far has hers spread?” Fel massaged the bottle of water in her hand. She looked the complete opposite of herself, her head has never banged this much; it felt like her brain was revolving and hitting the walls of her head. She felt sick.

“Adrenal cancer has four stages and she’s in stage three, I’m afraid she’ll be hitting stage four soon. It has spread into her nearby lymph nodes and is starting to grow into her kidney”

“Omg” They had their palms over their mouth, tears threatening to make a comeback.

“She’s really strong to have endured those symptoms, I must say” Doc Matt paused and sighed, he turned to face Phil who seemed to be among the few people who had their emotions in check. “When did she open up to you about the symptoms?”

“A year ago,” Phil resumed moping at her feet.

“Wow” Dan’s mum sighed, frowning “Are you really her aunt? I mean her relative? Even if she had truly been diagnosed with leukemia, why didn’t you make any attempt for solutions? Alright, the quack doctor said nothing could be done anymore. You didn’t go to other hospitals for confirmation at the very least. If you had made an attempt as little as my pinky finger,” She pointed it at Phil, wishing she could shove her head with it. “This could have been avoided”
“It’s really bad of you not to have made any effort! How could you even watch her for almost a year without doing anything! You were basically waiting for her to die!” Fel’s mother scowled.

“The least, you could have done is go to other hospitals, this tumor would have been prevented from growing into cancer and spreading this much. if only you had prioritized her health condition. It would have been discovered earlier and treated. You watched her for a year without making a move, really?” Rylan mother shook her head in complete disapproval.

“Right, her mother, brother and grandmother died of the same disease, that’s not enough reason for you to do nothing after she was diagnosed with same. Even if the doctor had indeed claimed she had limited time to live, you could have tried taking her for checkups, apply for chemotherapy amongst so many other options. It seems as though you were so nonchalant about her health which is quite disappointing as you claimed to be her aunt” Dan’s dad commented, giving Phil a dirty look.

“What if she had really died?” Fel’s mum chipped in again. “Something that could have been avoided”

Phil didn’t raise her head as they talked on.
She knew they were right; she hadn’t cared if Layla would die or not, she had only started caring recently.
She was ready to receive as much backlash as possible because she felt she deserved it.

“Who knew she was going through that much, yet she was all smiles whenever she visited. ” Dan’s mum shook her head.
“Exactly, Layla’s just one of the sweetest I’ve met” Fel’s mother acknowledged.

“I bet! Her behavior is as soothing as her look. I love her!” Rylan’s mother sighed.

“She has been having the symptoms for more than a year, I can assure you. She only decided to open up to you then” Doctor Matt said, making Phil blink.

“It’s certain you both do not have the typical relationship between aunts and nieces, what made her keep such from you for so long? Were you mistreating her? If I find out you are, I swear I’ll have you locked up” Dan’s mother slammed.

“Mum, how close their relationship is do not matter. Layla is capable of doing that regardless of the closeness of their relationship. She’s someone who won’t want to bother other people with her problem. If she hadn’t collapsed, we wouldn’t have found out” Dan said.

“Exactly, and I bet Layla’s reason for not opening up to us is because she probably doesn’t want us to worry” Rylan sighed.

“First of, that doctor is getting sued.” Fel’s voice shook, starting to punch her father’s number into her phone.

“It’s actually quite hard to detect Adrenal cancer early, it can be detected earlier in children than adults but adrenal cancer is rarely misdiagnosed as leukemia. So, it’s really obvious he came to the conclusion that it was leukemia, because her symptoms were quite similar to it and also her family history. He didn’t make the attempt to run the appropriate tests. A doctor should never make conclusions or assumptions on someone’s health condition no matter the situation surrounding the patient. It’s normal to suspect what could be wrong with the patient after being told the symptoms but it’s never right to conclude based on just your suspicion or speculation” Doc Matt explained.

“He’s getting sued after I beat the hell out of him. I swear” Fel said, her breath hot as she stepped farther away to speak to her father.

“Please what can be done?” Phil asked Doctor Matt.

“Surgery is the main treatment for stage three adrenal cancer. We’re going to perform adrenalectomy on her”

“What’s the surgery’s success rate?” Dan asked, his throat drying up.

“That, we can’t say, it depends on the patient but I’m afraid Layla’s has gone really weak, the rate of her success might be quite low”

“No. The rate of her surgery success isn’t low. It’s really high. She’s going to survive this. She’s going to pull through. God is going to come through for her” Anne said, the belief in her voice was as strong as the one in her eyes.

“I’m not saying you shouldn’t have faith but it’s better to view this realistically–”

“Involving God isn’t realistic?” Anne interrupted, a frown appearing on her face.

“I’m not saying that…”

“That’s the most realistic thing,” She interrupted him yet again. “Haven’t you heard of cases where all hope seemed lost but God came through? I’m sure as a doctor, you’ve experienced it as well. I understand your perspective but I would appreciate if you do not speak negativity into this. Layla always says our words are powerful, they are manifestations… you shouldn’t manifest negativity into her life”

“Ah, I’m really sorry about that… we’ll try our best with the surgery” Doc Matt smiled.

“That’s more like it. Please do” Anne nodded.

“What’s the next step?” Dan asked, getting impatient, he wanted to see Layla.

“After, she’s had enough rest and gained more strength, we will need to regulate her blood pressure and follow the necessary pre-surgery steps”

“How long will it take for you to begin the surgery” Rylan’s mum asked.

“With how unwell she still is, we might need to wait a few days to prep her for the surgery”

“Why can’t you do it immediately?” Phil asked, afraid something might happen during those few days.
“It’s dangerous if we rush into it, the surgery will most likely turn out unsuccessful. Her condition right now isn’t the best for it.”

“Can we see her now?” Dan asked.
“No, I’m not sure you’ll be allowed to see her today” Doctor Matt said.

“Can we watch her from the glass door then?” He asked.

“Of course, you’re free to”

“I want you to be specific Doc. What is really her chance of surviving the surgery? We need to know what to expect” Dan’s dad asked.

Deep lines appeared on Doctor Matt’s forehead. “Layla’s body has gone really weak, even after we wait a few days, I’m not sure she’s going to recover as much strength… I’m afraid her chance of survival is fifty-fifty”

***

“You’re going to be fine, okay?” Fel assured Layla who looked like it took all her strength to nod.

They were finally allowed to see her the next morning, their parents who had gone home last night were on their way already and Phil had gone to prepare a meal for her.

Dan rubbed his thumb on her palm in circles, not taking his gaze off her, his heart ached and he wanted to cry, not for the fact that she now looked completely different and distinct but for what she’s had to go through most of her life. Ranging from the death of her loved ones, getting mistreated by her aunt, the ostracization in school and down to this. He wished he could do something about her terrible fate. He would pick her over and over if he were to choose the strongest person he knew.

They held their tears, trying hard not to make them drop, they needed to be strong for her at least.

She was sitting up on the bed in her VIP ward, as Anne ran the comb through the sparse remaining of her hair in the gentlest way. “Just give me a minute, I’m going to make your hair look really great, you know I’m quite good at it” She smiled.

“Thank you, Anne,” Layla’s smile was pale. They refused to acknowledge the fact that her voice lacked the vigor and cheerfulness always accompanied with it.

“What happened to your fist?” Layla asked Rylan, breaking the silence, she grimaced on examining the bruise.

“Oh, this… it happened while I wanted to punch the damn doctor’s face, he held up his first-aid kit to dodge my punch and my fist crashed into the damn thing. I made him pay for it though”

“It must hurt so much” She blinked.

They told her everything already, from the doctor’s misdiagnosis to him getting arrested. The fact that she has Adrenal cancer and not leukemia didn’t make her feel any better even when she knew surgery can be performed and her chance of survival is fifty-fifty.

“Nah, not really, I got it treated yesterday already.” Rylan smiled.

“Are you sure?”

“Of course, c’mon”

“I’m done! Look how good of a job I did” Anne smiled. “Check it out Layla” She opened her phone camera and handed it to Layla.

“Thank you, Anne, this is pretty” Layla smiled. “I love it”

“I’m glad you do” Anne looked satisfied with her handiwork. She sat on the other side of Layla and silence fell upon them again.

They were all acting indifferent to the situation, it would have felt like another of their hang out if the location hadn’t been in a hospital. They acted like everything is fine and normal even though they could feel their world crashing.

“You guys aren’t pissed at me for keeping… it from you?” Layla broke the silence yet again.

“Who says so? I’m Hella pissed at you and I’m only waiting until after your surgery to scold you properly” Fel frowned.

Dan nodded.

“Same here” Rylan and Anne agreed.

“I’m so sorry not to have confided in you, it’s just, I didn’t want you guys to worry and you shouldn’t blame Phil or be pissed at her over anything. I caused it, Phil was ready to make me go to the hospital with her, she pleaded with me a ton of times but I always turned her down. She once invited a doctor over to the house after I wouldn’t agree after several pleas to go to the hospital with her and I ended up telling the doctor to leave or I was going to have him sued.

“She was equally ready to spill it to you guys but I…” Layla paused. “Threatened to kill myself”

“Omg Layla!” Fel’s eyes bulged.

“Why would you do that?” Dan frowned.

“I just didn’t want you guys to… worry or be sad, I didn’t want to bother anyone—”

“Save your explanation until after the surgery” Rylan sighed.

“I need to say it now, no one knows… what is going to happen”

“Nothing bad is going to happen” Anne said, almost immediately.

“The doctor said my chance is fifty-fifty…”

“And you think that means you’re going to die?” Fel raised her brow.

“It’s likely–”

“Stop it” Fel raised her voice louder than intended. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to yell but this is the last thing we need from you please.”

“Your belief that you’re going to make it needs to be as strong as ours. Please” Dan’s eyes were pleading.
“Nothing bad is going to happen, just have it in mind that you survived the surgery already and that belief is going to come to manifest” Rylan assured.

“Let’s leave everything until after the surgery, agreed?” Fel asked.
They nodded in agreement.

“Let’s pray” Anne said and minutes into the prayer, none of them could hold their tears any longer.

They held hands and cried, letting out emotions that has been on hold.
Layla wished she could console her friends but she couldn’t stop herself from crying as well. Her heart ached. This was what she hadn’t wanted; causing them this much pain.

They held her really tight as they prayed and cried. She couldn’t help but wallow in their prayers and tears, wiping tears off her face at interval.

It came to an end after what seemed like forever.
Fel excused herself to rinse her face, they all did same and provided a bowl of water for Layla to do the same as well. It kind of refreshed and made their tear-streaked faces look better.

The silence resumed again.

“Dan” Layla called.
“Huh, you want something?”
“Are you horrified with how I look now” Layla said.
Dan swallowed hard and shook his head, not trusting himself enough to speak without bursting into tears again.

“Do you still like me,” Layla paused. “I mean feelings?” She asked, not realizing she was holding her breath as she awaited his response.

If they were surprised by Layla’s question, they didn’t show it.
Dan smiled and nodded.
“Even with the fact that I’m almost bald? and..” Her throat tightened. “Ugly?”

“Having feelings for you never had to do with your looks. You should know me well enough to know looks isn’t my main attraction in anyone, I’ve never liked or dated anyone simply because they’re good looking.
“And, even in this state, you aren’t ugly! I do not want to hear you call yourself that anymore, okay?”

Layla nodded, smiling.
Dan still likes her! It further fueled her desire to live, if her surgery turns out successful. They could date! Something she’s wanted for some time.

A part of her felt sad that things might not actually turn out as she wanted.
“This is your first smile of today that actually reached your eyes. I’m glad” Fel smiled.

“There’s something I’ve been wanting to ask you, Layla” Rylan said.
“Go ahead”
“You already left for home in the cab. Why did you come back?”

Layla sighed. “Didn’t we say we were going to leave everything until after my surgery?”
They smiled, nodding. Glad she now had faith in her survival. But what they didn’t know is she planned to write it down on a paper, knowing she probably won’t make it out.

“I’m feeling sleepy” she said and they assisted her in laying properly on the bed and adjusting the pillow beneath her head.

She seemed to have lost so much weight within the space of yesterday and today.

“Fel, you seem to be a good narrator. Narrate the history of Moremi to me, I would love to hear it while I fall asleep” Layla said, smiling.
“Oh, great” Fel rubbed her palms together and grinned.

“Moremi was a beautiful and virtuous queen…” Fel started and had barely gotten to the middle part of the story before Layla’s soft snores filled the room.

…………….

Thanks for reading❤️