Chapter 2
"I'll
be there for you/ These five words I swear to you/ When you breathe I want to
be the air for you/ I'll be there for you"
~Bon Jovi's "I'll Be There For You"
It had been a few
weeks since Sara and Nick had paid a visit to Dr. Matheson. Nobody had been
in contact with the couple since the appointment, but it was more than apparent
that thing's at the Carter-Galen household were waning considerably. Nick's
illness was taking a serious toll on both him and on Sara, not to mention the
group.
A sudden ringing of the telephone broke Sara from a trance which she had subconsciously
succumbed to.
"Hello?" she asked into the receiver.
"Sara? This is Dr. Matheson."
A small knot formed in the pit of her stomach.
"The results are in," the doctor said as he stared at the sheet of
paper in his hand in a state of shock, disbelief, and a relief of sorts.
"And...?"
He hated to do this. "I'll need to see the two of you in my office to discuss
it."
Dr. Matheson could almost picture the troubled look on the young woman's face
as she started to walk with the phone.
"How soon do you need us in?" Sara asked with her thoughts running
wild.
"As soon as you can get here. I've cancelled the afternoon's appointments."
Her hand flew to her mouth in an automatic reaction. "Is it really that
bad?"
Dr. Matheson rubbed his eyes. "Please come in as soon as you can."
A few moments later, the visibly upset Sara and the weary doctor each hung up
their phones.
Sara Galen walked up the stairs as soon as she could to get to the napping Nick.
"Honey?" she asked as she shook him gently to get him out of his slumber.
"Honey wake up…please?"
Upon hearing the sounds of Sara's voice, Nick smiled. He loved her so much that
he couldn't put it into words.
Nick rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hands in an attempt to wake up. "What
time is it?" he questioned, still gripped by the loosening hands of slumber.
"Honey the doctor called."
"What'd he say?" Nick answered as he rolled over.
"We have to go in to see him for the results."
"Probably just to pick up a prescription or something," Nick muttered
in preparation for going back to sleep.
"He cancelled all appointments for this afternoon." Nick stopped where
he was and rolled back over so he was facing Sara. The look of concern confirmed
his thoughts.
"Did he say anything about what was going on?"
"No, only to come in as soon as possible."
* * * * *
Twenty minutes
later, the couple sat anxiously in the office of Dr. James Matheson, waiting
for him to walk through the door.
Nick and Sara sat hand in hand, using each other as comfort and support. Neither
knew what to expect, which was the most terrifying aspect of the whole ordeal.
The comfort came in the knowledge that they were both in this together.
The door to the office opened and the doctor slipped in. Two sets of eyes were
glued to his every move as he pulled a file off of a shelf, opened it, and removed
a paper. Looking at it one last time, the doctor looked up to meet the eyes
that were awaiting the answer to their endless amount of questions.
"Nick, Sara," Dr. Matheson started, not quite sure of how he was going
to say what needed so desperately to be said, "as you know, we've gotten
the results back for the tests." He eyed the two carefully before making
his decision. "Look," he said placing the papers down, "I'm going
to be blunt with you. You have two options: good news and bad news."
"Which do you suggest first?" Sara asked as she readjusted her grip
on Nick's hand.
"The good news is…" the doctor trailed, "you tested negative
for arthritis, Lyme, and 99% of all the other things we tested for."
"What about the other 1%? We don't really have to worry about that, right?"
Nick asked.
The doctor sighed. "The bad news is that you tested positive on one aspect
which is exactly where that last 1% comes in." The couple fell silent as
they prepared for whatever news the doctor was preparing himself for. "Nick,
I don't quite know how to tell you this."
Looking straight into the eyes of the 23-year-old young man, Dr. Matheson hated
himself for ever deciding to be a doctor. This was not the part of the job he
enjoyed, or could have even prepared himself for.
"Nick, you've tested HIV-positive."
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