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Run, run, run! Don’t look back. Just keep running. Out of breath. Got to keep going. Lungs. Pain. Ouch! Run, run, faster! Thirsty. Throat, burning. Run. Dying. Throat. Legs. Lungs. Heart. Blood. Pain. Muscles, aching. Loosing grip. No time to rest. Keep going. Run. Faster. Falling. They’re coming. Get up! Hurry! Can’t. breath. Heart. Pain. They’re eating me! Ouch! Teeth, sinking into my flesh. My blood spilling into their mouths. Pain. Dizziness. Fallen. Breath…. Heart… Mom!

As she awoke from her disturbing slumber, Laurelie Belle wrenched herself up into a sitting position, breathing in sharply as she looked around her dark room frantically. Her legs, sweating and throbbing, were tangled up in the white sheets after a series of violent kicks. She sat in her bed, taking in deep breaths to calm herself. Laurelie glanced over at the chair next to her bed and found her mother, Lisa, sound asleep. A wave of relief swept over as she listened to her mother’s even breathing. Laurelie moved her hand slightly and felt a wet spot. For a moment she thought she had wet the bed again, but realizing there was no smell, she put her arm up and extended it in the air. No IV restrained her arm. She put it back down and pressed a button on the bed railings that called for the nurse. It blinked red, illuminating her face with a reddish glow. She waited, looking around the room as objects came into focus.

The room had a scary horror movie- look to it. Everything was covered in a sheet of darkness. Directly in front of her bed was her favorite red cherry dresser from her small house a few blocks away from the hospital. Since she would be here for a while, she chose that dresser to hold her clothes. To the right above it was the TV, suspended on the wall. There was a blue chair in the far right corner that still had the imprint of Police Officer Brad, whom had visited her just a few hours before. The blinds on the window next to the blue chair were closed, only letting faint lines of light into the room from the street lamps.

Laurelie heard a slight creek and saw light begin to stream in from the hospital hallway. Light filled the room, stopping just shy of Lisa. A nurse peeked in, smiled, and waved. She opened her mouth to speak but Laurelie put her finger over her lips and pointed to her mother. The nurse looked in the direction she was pointing and nodded, smiling.

"What is it, darling?” Nurse Stacie asked quietly, walking towards Laurelie’s bed. Her white teeth stood out in the darkness while her chocolate skin hid in the shadows.

“My IV,” Laurelie pointed to her arm, “it came out. I had a bad dream and I guess it came out then. Some of it spilled on my bed and it’s wet here.” She pointed to the wet spot.

“Well now, a bad dream, huh?” the nurse began as she felt in the darkness for the loose IV. “What was it about, baby? You can tell me. Ah ha!” She grabbed the IV tube and felt until she reached the end of the needle.

“Well,” Laurelie started as Stacie began feeling her arm, looking for the entry tube, “it was about me. And I was running and running from something. It was really scary. And I fell and they ate me. While they ate me I saw mom. And then she went away.”

She looked up at the nurse, who had stopped what she was doing and stared at her, wide-eyed. They looked at each other, Laurelie with an innocent as-a-matter-of-fact face and Stacie with her eye brows up and her mouth slightly open.

“Child, are you feeling O.K.?” Stacie asked, jutting her head out slightly and looking at Laurelie through raised eye brows with a concerned look. She felt her forehead and cheeks. Laurelie shivered from the cold touch of her hand. “No fever. Well, lets just get this IV back in… ha! There we are. All better. Do you want your bedding changed? It’s just water, so it shouldn’t hurt anything. No? Alright then. Try and get some sleep baby.”

“Uh, Nurse Stacie?”

“Yes, child?”

“I… uh… have to go to the bathroom.” Laurelie said shyly. She didn’t like to fill people in on her business. Stacie chuckled softly.

“Well, darling, I suppose we will have to do something about that, wont we? Come on.” Stacie pulled the sheets down and helped her out of bed. Laurelie touched the cold floor lightly and grabbed onto the rack with her medication and water IV bag to help stabilize herself. Stacie placed her hand the small of Laurelie’s back and took the rack to wheel it. Slowly, they shuffled to the bathroom, which is to the right of the bed. Stacie turned on the light and grabbed all of the cords so Laurelie wouldn’t get tangled. The small child hopped up on the toilet and began to go, and then felt something oozing. She looked down and saw blood in the bowl.

"Nurse! It’s happening again!” she whined, partially scared. Stacie rushed over, leaving the rack unattended, and looked.

“Oh! Hold on there sweetie, let me get a cup. Maybe the doctor can find out some more with this.”

Stacie ran out of the bathroom quickly and grabbed a cup from the tray next to Laurelie’s bed. She ran back in and saw Laurelie very concentrated.

“Laurelie, are you O.K.?”

“Hurry,” she said exhausted, “I’m holding it in!”

Stacie gave the cup to Laurelie. After she was done, she handed the red liquid to Stacie who put it on the sink.

“Alright, baby, let’s wash your hands,” Stacie said, pulling up a crème-colored stool to the counter and turning on the faucet. Laurelie stepped onto the stool and stretched over the counter-top, barely touching the cold water Stacie had turned on. When the nurse saw this, she grabbed Laurelie under the armpits and lifted her up and over, holding her there for several seconds before the small bundle in her arms said she was finished. She set her back down and began walking out of the bathroom when she noticed Laurelie wasn’t coming. She looked back and saw her rubbing her hand up and down her bald scalp, staring in the mirror. A wave of sympathy rushed over Stacie as she watched the child helplessly feel for something that was not there.

Though she does not particularly like children, Stacie’s heart fell for this one. She was, after all, dying of the most horrible cancer known to children, but there was something about her sweet little face that made her heart melt. Every time Laurelie looked at her with her big, dark brown eyes, she had to succumb to the child’s needs. The angel could make anything seem funny, and you couldn’t help but laugh at the tall tales she wove. She was very creative, indeed, but more importantly sweet. There wasn’t a moment passing by where you could be mad at her. She did the nicest things for other people in the hospital, and not just for her wing. She visits the elderly, the babies, even the teenagers. She was special, and Stacie was drawn to her, like a mother.

Slowly, Stacie walked towards the bathroom. Her reflection appeared behind Laurelie’s as the approached her and placed her hand on soft pink princess pajamas. Laurelie looked at Stacie’s reflection and Stacie does the same as a few moments of time slips away in silence.
Stacie looks at the child, taking in her small features. Laurelie’s dark brown eyes stared into the mirror. They looked like they were searching for something, trying to find peace. Her cheeks were flushed against her grey, patchy skin. Stacie began rubbing her hand on Laurelie’s back and smiled, which caused Laurelie to smile back. Turned around and wrapped her arms around the nurse. Stacie hesitated, not knowing what to do, then returned the hug, letting her face feel Laurelie’s bald head. They let go, looking into each other’s eyes with love. Laurelie then turned back around to face the mirror, Stacie’s hands on her shoulders.

“It feels weird,” Laurelie said, still looking into the mirror, “my hair… it used to be so pretty.” Stacie couldn’t help but smile and looked down at her.

“I know, baby, but you’re still very pretty.”

Laurelie began to shake.

“Laurelie, are you all right?” Stacie looked in the mirror. Laurelie’s eyes slowly rolled back as the shaking grew more violent. Suddenly she fell, her head hitting the cold tile floor.

“What’s wrong?” Stacie looked at the doorway and saw Lisa standing wide eyed. “Oh my God, Laurelie!”

“Mrs. Belle, I need you to come here and put this in her mouth,” Stacie instructed as grabbed a small plastic cup and thrust it in Lisa’s direction. “Then I need you to back away.” Lisa did as she was told while Stacie rushed to the door and opened it.

“I need some help in here!” Stacie called out into the hallway. Many people’s heads turned, a few began rushing to the room. “She’s seizing!”

Stacie ran back to the bathroom to find Lisa leaning against the bathroom counter in horror..

“She’s turning blue!” Mrs. Belle screamed, her long blonde and brown hair coming out of her loose pony-tail as she scrambled towards her daughter and kneeled besides her. She heard many voices above Laurelie’s choking, some shouting directions while others asked where things were. Mrs. Belle found herself being pulled away from Laurelie by the arms. She struggled to break loose so she could go back to her baby.