The elevator ride up was one of the longest elevator rides of my life. I thought about the tests, and the worst thing they could tell me. That I was going to die. I thought about my friend, Sarah, and about what could happen to me.
The ding of the elevator, signaling that we were on the correct floor, interrupted many thoughts. We stepped out onto the fifth floor, and I walked up to the desk, holding Steph's hand. I asked, in a barely audible and shaky voice, where the conference room was.
"Down the hall on the first right, sweetie." said the receptionist.
We walked down the corridor and in to the room where Dr. MacField and Dr. Sauin sat. We sat down in the 2 swivel (i love that word!) chairs across the table from them.
Dr. MacField was the first to speak. "Hello Steph, Char." He said, nodding towards each of us. "I'm afraid I... we have some bad news for you. We took these test to look for the presence of a gene in your blood cells. This gene causes a disease called Morgandauters. The disease, in its early stage, shows fainting frequently."
"But it's treatable, right? I mean, she's not going to die from it, right?" Steph said hurriedly.
"Hello, I am Dr. Sauin, and I am an expert on this disease. The disease is treatable, if caught early enough. Unfortunately, though, 90% of the patients diagnosed with this disease died from it. But, if Charlotte gets through the first 2 years of the disease, and the treatment works, she should be fine and will not relapse."
"So what is the treatment?" Steph asked.
"The treatment resembles the treatments for cancer, but without much hair loss. They occur every other week."
"Will she have to stay here?"
"Yes, she will, at least for the first year. After that, we'll just have to see."
"Oh, but she can have visitors, right?"
"Of course."
"When does she need to be here?"
"Tomorrow morning."
"Char, are you okay, you haven't said a word yet?" question Dr. MacField.
"A... I.... Um..." tried Char, but no real words would come out.
"I think we need to go home now, we'll be back in the morning." filled in Steph.
