Brian opened his eyes and looked around. He yawned and rubbed his eyes. "What happened?"
"You fell asleep," Stephanie answered.
"I did? What time is it?" Brian asked, looking and sounding a little dazed and confused.
"It's almost seven. I think you fell asleep sometime around four this morning. We decided not to wake you. I went back to my hotel, grabbed a shower, got breakfast, and came back up here."
"You haven't slept? Maybe you should go home and rest."
"I am tired. You should go home too, Brian. You look like hell."
"Thanks," Brian answered sarcastically. "So what's going on with Leah?"
"It doesn't look good, Brian. She won't take a feeding tube, and the doctor says they can't put her on one without her consent, and yet she gives them consent to put her on a respirator. She stopped breathing again about an hour ago. Mom's trying to talk some sense into her, but I don't know if she's doing any good. Brian if they let you in to see her, please talk to her. Talk some sense into her. She'll listen to you."
"I'll try," Brian said, getting up slowly from the uncomfortable chair which had been his bed that morning. He walked up the hall to Leah's room. Just as he started to enter the room, a nurse stopped him.
"I'm sorry, Sir. You can't go in. Only one person can see her at a time and immediately family only."
"Please, Miss. I only want to see her a minute."
"Sir, I'm sorry. I can't allow it."
"No, he can see her." Leah's mom said as she walked out of the room. "I'll just be down the hall. He can go in." Leah's mother patted Brian on the shoulder and walked passed him and down the hall.
Brian entered the room and walked over to Leah's bedside.
"Hey sweetie pie," Leah whispered.
"Hey baby! How you feelin'?" Brian asked.
"Not so great. Where's Nicky? Can you get him to come in and see me? I love him so much."
"No, I don't know where he is. I'm sure he'll be up here shortly though."
Brian suddenly felt uncomfortable when Leah started asking about Nick. He couldn't believe that Leah and Nick had this relationship going on, and he didn't know about it. What he really wanted was to have Leah to himself, but he soon got this thought out of his mind and came back to the important matter at hand.
"Leah, listen uh---I know that at times life must be pretty hard for you. I know you have a lot to deal with, but now you can't give up, not like this. You are the most beautiful person I know, and even if you didn't have all this beauty, I'd still love you, because you're a wonderful person. You're smart and caring. You're sensitive, loving, and so talented. You're a terrific girl."
"Brian, you've always been such a good friend to me. I love you so much, but I hate myself. Maybe you see a wonderful person, but I don't." Leah began to cry. "I want for them to take me off the respirator, so the next time I stop breathing, I won't start ever again."
"No Leah!" Brian shouted.
"I can't live like this anymore. My life has been a disaster. We should have known I was cursed when I became sick as a child."
"Leah, you had a heart problem; that was not your fault."
"I know it wasn't my fault. It was a curse on me. I never could be a successful dancer, because I'm cursed. I could never go where I want to go and be what I want to be, because I'm cursed. Nick loves me, and I love Nick. But I can't be with Nick, because I may curse him to."
"Lee, what are you talking about?" Brian was obviously confused about all of this.
"Since I was around twelve years old I've been hearing these voices."
"What kind of voices?"
"Brian, you don't know what it's like to sit around for thirteen years listening to these voices and hoping that they'd just go away.
"Voices in your head, like schizophrenia?"
"I'm crazy I know it."
"No, you're not crazy, Lee."
"I'm a failure. I will never succeed. I will never amount to anything. I should just die. That's what they tell me, and I believe them."
"You've been hearing voices for thirteen years, and you never told anybody."
"If I had told you, what would you have done? Told my mother? Then she could just have me committed."
"She would not have you committed, just get you some treatment for this."
"Oh no, at least here I'm dying with dignity."
"Lee, listen to me. This is not dying with dignity. This is losing a battle. This is giving up. By dying in this hospital, you are giving in to those voices you hear, and you've been giving in ever since you started starving yourself whenever the hell that was."
"Off and on for the past nine years."
"Now it's time for you to fight back. We can get you through this. You're family will help. I'll help. Nick and the boys will help. You gotta make the first step. You have to let them give you the feeding tube."
"What good will that do? I'm worthless. Even if I get through this I'll never be able to do what I want to do."
"Dancing?" Brian asked.
"I'll never be a success."
"Yes, you will. You're a great dancer, but you won't be a success unless you get out of this hospital. Leah, the guys have been talking, and Fatima. We're gonna need some dancers for our tour and our videos. You'd be perfect."
"Brian, that's sweet, but I don't want a dance job to be given to me, because people feel sorry for me."
"I don't feel sorry for you. I believe in you. I see your talent. Do you remember when we were eleven years old, and you sat on my front porch talking about how you were going to be the best dancer in the whole world one day?"
"Yes, I remember," Leah closed her eyes as she thought back.
"Well, it can still happen for you. I know that deep down inside you there is a little girl who still says that she can be the best dancer in the world. She's just been hidden away while you've been going through all this, but you can make that little girl's dream---you can make your dream come true."
"Yes, Brian. You're right. You know I'm feeling kind of hungry, but what happens when the voices come back and they want me to lose more weight."
"We'll fight them."
Brian leaned down and gave Leah a big hug. He couldn't believe how truely small she had gotten to be. She had become very weak and frail, but Brian believed in her. He believed that if her heart was set on getting better, she'd get better.