Three Months Later

It's been three months since I moved to Los Angeles to be the guardian of my brother and sister, and it hasn't been easy for any of us.

A day after my parents' funeral, we moved out of the house and into an apartment building in Burbank. The apartment building we moved into has the best security measures in place, and it's what we need because our parents' murderers are still out there.

The building's entrance door has a security lock; the only way to get in and out is to know the code. The codes are changed weekly for the people who live in the building.

There's a security guard behind the desk in the foyer. He knows everyone's names in the building. I recently learnt the security guy's name: Hans.

Hans is a big guy with tanned skin. His arms and legs are full of muscle, and he's bold. He looks like a WWE Wrestler.

When Aleysa and Nate aren't doing their homework, they are downstairs talking to Hans. During his night shift, they bring him leftover food and keep him company until he's finished dinner.

Looking at the clock, I see it's 7 a.m., and my sister hasn't come down the hall for breakfast. I walk to her room and open the door.

Entering the room, I see her back turned to the door. "Aleysa, it's time for you to get up." She doesn't make a sound or move. Turning her on her back, I see she's pale, and there's blood in the pillowcase and sheets. Dried blood is covering her face and nose. As I pull the blankets back, I see bruises forming on her body.

What's happening to my sister?

"Nate," I yell.

Nate runs into the room and looks at me. "What?"

"Call an ambulance. There's something wrong with Aleysa." I move my hand close to her mouth, ensuring she's breathing. I know she's still with us when I feel a slight breeze blowing.

She's alive.

I sat on the bed and looked at my sister.

Nate pulls his phone out of his pocket and calls 911. He tells them what's wrong with Aleysa.

While he's on the phone, I grab an overnight bag from the closet and start packing it for Aleysa.

I don't know how long we're going to be at the hospital.

For the last week and a half, Aleysa has been sick. She started to feel lethargic, and then her appetite diminished a couple of days ago.

Last week, I got a phone call from Aleysa's school, and they told me she wasn't feeling well. I went to school and picked her up.

When we got home, she went straight to bed and slept.

That night, I brought her some soup, and she ate that.

During the day, Aleysa screamed my name, and I jumped out of bed. Running to her room, I found her on the ground. I helped her up and asked. "What happened?"

Tears fell down her face as she said. "I was going to the bathroom, and I started to feel dizzy and fell."

After putting her in bed, I put the blankets over her. I walked into the bathroom and filled the cup on the counter. Giving the water to Aleysa, I said, "You need to stay hydrated, sis."

Aleysa takes the cup from me and drinks it. When the cup is empty, she gives it to me. "Thanks," she says, lying back in bed and falling asleep.

I kiss her cheek and whisper, "I'll fill the cup up." Walking to the bathroom, I fill the cup again, put it on the nightstand, and leave the room.

Nate clears his throat, trying to get my attention. "Chloe?" I turn towards him. "The ambulance is pulling in front of the building. I'll go down and get them." He walks out of the room.

Placing the overnight bag next to the front door, I wait for the paramedics to enter the apartment. The front door opens, and Nate walks in, followed by a male and female paramedic. He shows them to Aleysa's room and gives them all the information they need about what's wrong with our sister.

The paramedics help Aleysa off the bed and place her on the stretcher. The female paramedic looks at us and says. "Who's coming with us?"

"That will be me." Turning towards Nate, I say, "You can drive to the hospital."

A smile spreads across his face. "Thanks, sis. Where are the keys?"

"On the hook in the kitchen." I follow them out the door with Aleysa.

Nate closes the front door and locks it behind him. We wait for the lift to reach our floor and take it to the ground.

When we exit the lift, Hans is standing at his desk. He looks over at us, and his eyes start to water.

He cares for my sister.

"Is she going to be okay?" He asks.

Nate places his hand on Hans's shoulder. "I will call you later and let you know what's happening with Aleysa."

"Okay," A tear falls down his face, and he wipes it away with the back of his hand.

We exit the building and head straight to the ambulance parked in front of the building. I climb into the back, and the male paramedic closes the door behind us.

The ambulance pulled away from the curb, and we headed toward the closest hospital. I tell the paramedic how Aleysa had the flu for a week and a half and how she's been feeling tired. Then, about the bruises that I found on her body this morning. Also, about the blood on the sheets and pillowcases.

Aleysa opens her eyes and looks at me. "What happened?" She asks weakly.

Tears fall down my face as I look at her pale complexion. I touch her hand, and it's cold. "You weren't waking up when I called you. I found bruises all over your body and blood on the sheets.

"Not again." She whispers, pulling at her sleeve.

If I hadn't been sitting that close to her, I wouldn't have been able to catch it. "What do you mean by not again, Aleysa?"

Aleysa pretends not to hear me. Her eyes move around the ambulance, and she avoids eye contact with me. "I'm tired," she whispers. Her strawberry blonde hair sticks to her face, and I move it off.

"Go back to sleep." I kiss her cheek, and she closes her eyes.

Once the ambulance comes to a stop, the paramedics take Aleysa out of the ambulance and wheel her to the children's ward. Aleysa is taken through the doors and out of our view.

The nurse tells us to stay in the waiting room as they look over our sister. I move over to a chair and sit.

Nate grabs my hand. "Is Aleysa going to be alright?"

I'm not going to lie to my brother. He's at the age to know the truth, even if it's not what he wants to hear.

I look at him. "I don't know. We must wait for the Doctors to return with the test results."

The clock on the wall tells me how long we've been here. Five hours later, we haven't been told anything.

What's taking them so long?

Nate begins tapping his foot as he listens to music on his phone. He taps the armrest. "I'm hungry, " he groans.

I go through my purse and find twenty dollars sitting at the bottom. I give it to Nate. "Go to the cafeteria and get something to eat."

Nate hugs me. "Thanks." He heads towards the stairs and waves at me before disappearing around the corner.

A Doctor exits the staff-only door and looks around the room. "I'm looking for the family of Aleysa Knight."

Standing up, I say. "That's me." I walk over to him.

"I'm Doctor Reynolds. I'll be looking after Aleysa while she's here." He takes a breath before saying. "I ran a few tests on her, and the results returned. Aleysa has acute leukaemia."

No, no, no. We can't handle this on top of everything else.

Tears begin to fall on my face.

The Doctor places his hand on my shoulder. "I'm so sorry." He pulls out some pamphlets. Here's some information you need to know about the form of leukaemia Aleysa has. There are also support groups for families dealing with the same thing."

I take the pamphlets from him. "Thanks. When can I see Aleysa?"

He leads me over to the seats. "Aleysa's still asleep, but I'll let you see her when she wakes. I want to discuss the next steps with you."

"Okay,"

Doctor Reynolds looks me in the eyes as he says. "Chemo will be the next step we take to cure the type of leukaemia Aleysa has. She's going to feel unwell when we give her the first round of chemo. Do you know if she's had leukaemia before?"

"I don't know, Doctor Richards. My brother will be able to tell you."

Nate walks around the corner, and he sees Doctor Richards with me. He drops the drink and the sandwich he's holding on the ground. "Please, tell me it didn't come back."

I walk over to him. "What came back?"

Nate's face is pale. He looks at me. "Aleysa had acute leukaemia when she was seven. They gave her chemo, and it worked for her. She had four rounds of chemo, and then she was given the all-clear. She was in remission for the last five years." He pulls his phone out of his pocket. "Before Mom and Dad were murdered, they were supposed to take Aleysa to the hospital. I forgot all about it."Tears begin to fall on his face, and I pull him into my arms.

I hold my brother as he cries over our sister. My eyes begin to fill with tears, and they spill over.

An hour later, Doctor Richards returns, and he looks at me. "Aleysa is awake and asking to see you both."

Nate and I follow the doctor to Aleysa's room.

Doctor Richards turns towards us. "Before you enter the room, I need you to wash your hands." He opens the door to the bathroom, and we enter.

Nate and I washed our hands thoroughly and followed him to the room.

Doctor Richards opens the door, and I see my sister sitting in a bed with tubes in her arms.

Please take a deep breath and then release it. "You've got this, Chloe." I enter the room.

Aleysa smiles. "Chloe," she whispers.

I hug her. "Hey, princess."

She giggles. "I miss you calling me that."

Nate grabs her hand. "Leys, don't scare me like that again." He hugs her.

"I'm sorry." She mumbles.

Aleysa looks at Nate and me. "I have leukaemia again?"

"Yes,"

She looks away from me, and tears fall down her face. "I don't want to go through this again."

I look at my siblings. "Why didn't anyone call me? I would have helped out."

"Mom and Dad didn't want to ruin your future. At the time, education was best for you in Mom and Dad's minds. We wanted to call you and tell you about the leukaemia, Chloe. However, Mom and Dad wanted to keep it buried." He looked away from me. "We didn't think it would come back so soon."

I must review my parents' health insurance policy to see if we're covered.

I look at Nate. "I need to find a job."

Nate looks at Aleysa. "I'll quit school and look after her."

Standing up, I stare my brother down and say, "No, you won't. You're going to University in seven or eight months. I also don't want you to miss out on the opportunities of being a teen."

Nate climbs onto the bed with Aleysa. "It was Mom and Dad's plan for me to go to university. I never agreed to it."

I sigh.

What am I going to do with him?