Path of the Unmentioned: The Missing Piece
Chapter 124: The Confession [3]

The hospital corridor stretched before Mira Farrow.

The air smelled sharp. Full of disinfectant, mixing with the faint sweetness of old flowers from the gift shop down the hall. It made Mira's stomach twist.

She leaned against the wall. Her fingers digging into the peeling paint. Trying to stay upright as the doctor's voice echoed in her head.

"Lila's condition… it's progressing faster than we anticipated," he had said. His voice had been low, and careful. Like words could break her.

She remembered how he wouldn't meet her eyes. Just stared down at the chart in his hands.

"The degeneration is spreading through her nervous system. There's no cure. We can slow it, maybe, but we can't stop it."

Mira's throat had gone dry. She could barely speak. "How long?"

The doctor hesitated, adjusting his glasses. "A month," he said finally. "Maybe two months if we're lucky."

She had gripped the edge of the desk so hard her hands hurt. "There has to be something. Anything. Clinical trials, research studies—"

"Even if there were…" the doctor had glanced away, his voice getting quieter, "the cost—"

"I don't care about the cost!" The words had exploded out of her before she could stop them.

Her voice had cracked. Then, quieter. "Please. She's only eight."

But the doctor had only sighed and lowered his eyes again. His silence was worse than a no.

Now, back in the hallway. Mira stood in front of Lila's hospital room, forehead pressed against the cold metal frame.

She could hear the heart monitor inside. Steady and slow, beeping like a ticking clock counting down.

She pictured her dad, eyes sunken with exhaustion, hands rough from endless hours at the factory.

He never complained, not once. But she knew he was breaking under the weight of it all.

She wiped her eyes on her sleeve. The tears came anyway. She couldn't let Lila see her like this. Lila didn't need more worry.

Taking a deep breath. Mira opened the door.

Sunlight slipped through the half-closed blinds, casting soft lines across the bed and floor.

Lila looked up from her coloring book. Red hair sticking out in messy curls like she'd just wrestled her pillow.

Her face lit up when she saw Mira.

"Mira! You came!" she said. Her voice rougher than yesterday but still full of joy.

"Of course I came," Mira said, smiling through the ache in her chest.

She crossed the room quickly, dropping her backpack beside the chair and careful not to bump anything.

Lila's crayons and drawings were spread across the little table beside the bed. Pages full of rainbows and smiling animals.

"I brought you something special today," Mira said, kneeling beside her.

She reached into her bag and pulled out a shiny new box of crayons.

The 64-pack with the sharpener in the back. Lila had stared at it in the gift shop window for days.

Lila's hazel eyes widened. "No way!" she gasped, reaching out with both hands.

Her fingers shook a little. But she grabbed the box and hugged it to her chest. "These are the good ones! Dad said they were too expensive…"

Mira swallowed hard. She kept her smile steady. "I saved up my lunch money," she said, ruffling Lila's wild hair.

"Figured my favorite artist needed the best tools."

Lila giggled, already tearing the box open. The crayons spilled into her lap like a pile of tiny, colorful treasures.

She held each one up, as if checking for magic.

"I'm gonna draw you the best picture ever," she said seriously. Picking a bright purple crayon and going straight to work.

Mira sat down in the chair beside her, watching quietly.

Lila's small hands moved with care, even though they shook now and then.

The sunlight lit up the freckles on her cheeks, making them look gold.

For a moment, it felt almost normal.

Like they were at home again, sitting at the kitchen table, not in a hospital room surrounded by machines.

Time passed slowly, gently. Mira didn't say much. She just watched her little sister draw, trying to hold the moment still.

After a while, Lila yawned and reached for Mira's phone on the nightstand.

"Can I play that animal game? Just for a little bit?" she asked with her usual pout. The one she knew Mira couldn't say no to.

Mira hesitated. The doctors had told them to limit screen time. But the look in Lila's eyes… She just wanted to feel normal.

"Ten minutes," Mira said, unlocking the phone. "Then rest, okay?"

"Okay!" Lila said, already scrolling through the apps with fast little fingers. She tapped into the game, then suddenly paused.

Her eyes narrowed. "Mira… who's this?"

She held up the phone. It was a photo of Kyle, taken during one of his study sessions in Library.

His dark hair was messy, falling over his forehead, and he was frowning at a math problem like it had insulted him personally.

Mira's heart skipped. She'd taken it weeks ago, when she'd first noticed him.

Just a stupid, secret thing she'd never meant for anyone to see.

She'd forgotten that picture was even in her gallery.

Heat rushed to her cheeks as she reached for the phone. "Oh, that's just someone from school. Nobody important."

Lila pulled it away, holding it higher. Her eyes sharp and full of mischief.

"He's cute," she said matter-of-factly.

Mira froze.

Then Lila tilted her head, her expression dead serious.

"Is he your boyfriend?"

"What? No!" Mira's voice shot up like she'd touched something hot.

Her face turned red as she waved her hands in the air. "He's just… just a guy from my class, okay?"

Lila raised an eyebrow. Giving her that smug look.

"You're blushing," she said in a sing-song voice. Poking Mira lightly on the cheek. "You loooove him."

Mira groaned, dropping her head into her hands. "I am not blushing. And I definitely do not...ugh, Lila!"

But the grin on Lila's face was too bright to argue with.

It lit up her whole face. Chasing away the dull tiredness that had lived there for too long.

Her red hair was a mess of curls that stuck out in different directions, and her hazel eyes sparkled like she'd just found the best secret in the world.

Mira sighed and leaned back in the chair beside the bed.

The old cushion squeaked under her weight. "Okay, fine," she muttered, folding her arms. "Maybe I kind of like him. Just a little."

Lila squealed so loudly that a nurse walking past the door gave them both a look.

Mira gave her an apologetic smile before the nurse walked away shaking her head.

"I knew it!" Lila said, practically bouncing on the bed.

Until the motion turned into a cough that made her curl forward, holding her side.

Mira jumped up, heart in her throat. But Lila waved her off.

"I'm okay," she said, a little breathless. "Just got too excited."

When she leaned back against the pillows again. Her cheeks were still flushed.

But her smile hadn't faded. If anything, it had only grown.

"So," she said slowly, drawing the word out. "When do I get to meet him?"

Mira almost choked. "Meet him?" Her eyes went wide. "Lila, we're not even... There's nothing to meet! He doesn't even know I like him."

Lila's bottom lip stuck out in that perfect little pout she always used to get her way.

"Please?" she asked softly. "I never get to meet any of your friends anymore. And he looks nice."

She turned the phone toward herself again and studied Kyle's picture like it was the most important thing in the world. "He's got kind eyes."

Mira swallowed hard. Her chest ached.

Before everything. Before the diagnosis, the hospital stays, and the endless tests.

Lila had always been the loudest, friendliest person in the room. She loved people.

She used to beg to come with Mira and her friends just to sit and listen to their jokes.

Now… now she barely left her bed. And something as small as a silly photo on a phone was enough to make her whole day.

Mira looked down at her hands. "He's really busy with school," she said quietly.

Lila's smile faded, just a little. She didn't say anything.

She just picked at the edge of the hospital blanket with her fingers, eyes down.

Mira's heart twisted.

"Just for a little while?" Lila whispered.

"You could tell him I'm your favorite sister. I promise I won't even embarrass you. Much." She glanced up with a teasing grin.

That did it.

Mira looked at her. Lila's hospital gown was too big now, and the dark circles under her eyes made her look older than she was.

But her smile. Her smile was still stubborn and strong. Still full of hope.

"Okay," Mira said softly. "I'll… I'll ask him to visit."

Lila let out a tiny cheer, like it was Christmas morning. "Promise?"

Mira smiled despite herself. "Promise."

Lila held up her pinky. Mira hooked hers around it, careful not to squeeze too hard.

Her sister's hand felt too small, too fragile.

But Lila didn't seem to notice. She launched right into a flurry of questions.

"What's his name? What's his favorite color? Does he like dogs or cats better? What kind of music does he listen to? Is he good at math or do you have to help him a lot?"

Mira leaned back in the chair, letting her sister's excited chatter wash over her like sunlight.

She had no idea how she was going to ask Kyle. She didn't even know if he'd say yes. But that didn't matter right now.

Because Lila was smiling again.

And that was enough.

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