The smell of Mum's lasagne filled the kitchen as I sat at the dinner table. My stomach growled, reminding me I hadn't eaten much all day. Chemo tends to mess with your appetite, but today, I was actually hungry.

"Smells amazing, Mum," I said as she started dishing out the food.

Dad grinned, rubbing his hands together. "Your mother's lasagne is the best cure for anything, I always say."

I rolled my eyes, but I couldn't help smiling. Dad's corny jokes were oddly comforting right now.

Meri, my little sister, bounced in her seat. "Can I have extra cheese on mine, Mum? Please?"

"Sure, sweetie," Mum said, adding an extra sprinkle to Meri's plate.

As we started eating, the conversation flowed easily. It felt almost normal like we were just a regular family having dinner, not a family dealing with a terminally ill teenager.

"So, how was school today, Meri?" Dad asked, between bites of lasagne.

Meri's face lit up. "Oh! We learned about dinosaurs. Did you know that the T-Rex had teeth as big as bananas?"

I couldn't help but laugh at her enthusiasm. "Banana teeth? That's pretty cool."

"Super cool," Dad agreed. "Maybe we should start calling you T-Meri."

Meri giggled, showing off her own decidedly non-banana-sized teeth.

"How about you, Beth?" Mum asked, her eyes soft with concern. "How are you feeling after today?"

I shrugged, pushing my food around on my plate. "Okay, I guess. A little tired."

Dad reached over and squeezed my hand. "That's normal, sweetheart. But you're doing great."

I was about to reply when the phone rang. Mum got up to answer it, and I turned back to my food, only half-listening to her conversation.

"Hello? Oh, hi Sarah... What? Oh no, is he okay?"

I perked up at that. Sarah was Mum's sister, my aunt. And the 'he' they were talking about had to be my cousin Jake.

Mum's voice got quieter, but I could still catch bits and pieces. "...kidney again? Oh, Sarah... How long has he been on dialysis?... I see... No, don't even think about that..."

I looked at Dad, who was frowning slightly as he listened to Mum's conversation.

"What's going on?" I whispered.

Dad shook his head. "I'm not sure, honey. Let's wait for your mum to finish the call."

But I had a sick feeling and knew what it was about. Jake had diabetes, and I remembered hearing something about kidney problems before.

Mum's voice rose slightly, and I caught her following words. "Don't be silly, you're family... Yes, we're going through something, but so are you. Of course, we want to help..."

My mind was racing. Jake needed a kidney. And Mum was offering to help, even though we had our own problems to deal with, even though I was dying.

I pushed that thought away. This wasn't about me right now. This was about Jake.

Finally, Mum hung up the phone and came back to the table. She looked tired suddenly, older than she had just a few minutes ago.

"What's wrong, Mum?" Meri asked, her voice small.

Mum sighed. "That was Aunt Sarah. Your cousin Jake is having problems with his kidneys again. He's on dialysis, waiting for a transplant, but things aren't looking good."

"Oh no," I breathed. "Is there anything we can do?"

Mum gave me a sad smile. "Your dad and I will get tested to see if we are a donation match. Your aunt didn't want to ask, with everything we're dealing with, but..."

"But we're family," Dad finished for her. "Of course, we'll help if we can."

Meri piped up, "Can I get tested too?"

Mum shook her head. "No, sweetie. You're too young. And Beth..." she paused, glancing at me apologetically, "Beth can't be tested either because of her cancer."

I nodded, feeling a twinge of... was it disappointment? It was strange. A part of me had wanted to help, even though I knew logically that I probably couldn't.

"So it's just you and Dad?" I asked.

"Yes," Mum confirmed. "We'll go in for testing next week."

As the conversation about kidney donation continued around me, I found myself stuck on what Mum had said. I couldn't be tested because of my cancer. It made sense, I guess, but something about it didn't sit right with me.

Why should I die with perfect organs when someone else could use them? Sure, I had cancer, but it wasn't in every part of my body. There had to be something that could be useful, right?

I needed to know more. I needed to research this.

If I couldn't donate now, maybe I could do something after I was gone. The thought was scary but also weirdly comforting—like perhaps some part of me could live on, helping someone else.

I glanced around the table at my family, still deep in discussion about how to help Jake. They were all so willing to give, to do whatever they could. Maybe this was my chance to do the same.

I didn't say anything out loud—not yet. I needed to do my research first to understand what was possible.

This could be it. This could be how I leave my mark on the world and make my short life mean something more significant.

My mind raced with possibilities as I helped clear the dishes after dinner. I had much to learn and little time to do it, but I was determined.

I might be dying, but that doesn't mean I can't still make a difference. I just need to figure out how to do it.

After helping with the dishes, I headed upstairs to my room. I was tired, but my mind was still buzzing with thoughts about organ donation.

I changed into my comfy pyjamas and was just about to climb into my bed when my phone rang. My heart jumped slightly when I saw Nathan's name on the screen.

"Hey, Nate," I answered, unable to keep the smile out of my voice.

"Hey, Beth," he replied, and I could hear the grin in his voice too. "How are you doing? How'd the chemo go?"

I flopped onto my bed, getting comfortable. "It was... okay, I guess. I felt sick but ate some of Mum's lasagne for dinner."

"That's good," Nathan said. "Your mum's lasagne is the best."

"Yeah," I agreed. "Though I was sick twice on the drive home and once before dinner. But I haven't thrown up since, so... progress?"

Nathan chuckled softly. "Look at you, finding the bright side. That's my girl."

I rolled my eyes, even though he couldn't see me. "Shut up," I said, but I was smiling.

We fell into an easy conversation after that, like we always do. Nathan told me about his day at college, the funny thing that happened in math class, and the new song he was learning on guitar. It was so normal, so comforting. For a little while, I could almost forget about the cancer, the chemo, all of it.

"Oh," I said suddenly, remembering. "I met this kid at the hospital today. Tommy. He's blind, but he draws these amazing pictures. He drew me!"

"No way," Nathan said, sounding impressed. "That's so cool. You'll have to show me next time I see you."

"Yeah, for sure," I replied. Then, taking a deep breath, I added. "Speaking of next time... I was wondering if maybe you'd want to come with me to my next chemo appointment session. On Monday?"

There was a brief pause, and for a second, I was afraid I'd made things weird. But then Nathan spoke, his voice soft and sincere. "Of course, I'll come, Beth. You don't even have to ask. I told you, I'm here for whatever you need."

I felt a lump form in my throat. "Thanks, Nate. You're the best, you know that?"

"I try," he joked, but I could hear the emotion in his voice too.

We talked for a while longer about everything and nothing. Even on my worst days, Nathan always knew how to make me laugh. That's why he was my best friend.

"Hey, Nate?" I said suddenly.

"Yeah?"

I hesitated for a moment, then plunged ahead. "There's something I want to research. Something important. I might need your help. Can we talk about it on Monday at the hospital?"

"Sure," he said, sounding curious but not pushing for details.

There was a brief pause, and then Nathan spoke again. "So, uh... are you returning to college?"

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "Nah. Mum spoke to them, and they understood. It's just... there's no point, you know?"

"Okay then," Nathan said firmly. "Neither am I."

"What?" I sat up straight in bed. "Nate, no. You can't do that."

"I can, and I will," he insisted.

"But... you're putting your life on hold because of me," I protested, feeling a mix of guilt and frustration. "Because I'm dying."

"Shut up," Nathan said. "I want to spend as much time with you as possible, and I can't do that stuck in a stuffy lecture hall. All I'm going to be doing is thinking about you. I won't be able to concentrate on anything else because you're the only thing on my mind right now, Beth."

"Wow," I breathed, my heart doing a weird flip in my chest. I could feel my cheeks heating up, and I was glad he couldn't see me.

"You mean so much to me," Nathan continued, his voice softening. "So fucking much to me."

I felt tears welling up in my eyes, and before I knew it, I was crying.

"Don't cry," he said, sounding panicked. "Beth, please don't cry."

"I'm so scared," I choked out between sobs. "I'm terrified, Nate."

"Fuck," he muttered. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Beth." He paused for a moment, then tried to change the subject. "Hey, um... what about your bucket list? What else is on it? Come on; there's got to be some fun stuff on there, right?"

I laughed through my tears, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand. "Hold on," I said, getting up and moving to my desk. I pulled open the drawer and took out the slightly crumbled piece of paper I'd scribbled on. "Okay, I've got it."

"Hit me," Nathan said, and I could hear the smile in his voice.

I cleared my throat dramatically. "Number one: Skydiving."

"Classic," Nathan commented. "Terrifying, but classic."

"Number two: Learn to play the guitar."

"The guitar? Really?"

I giggled. "Yeah, I don't know. It seemed fun, plus I know you play it too. And anyway, it seemed fun and not too hard. In case I don't have much time to practice."

There was a moment of awkward silence, and then Nathan coughed. "Right. What else?"

"Um, let's see... Oh, here's a good one. Number five: Have a massive water balloon fight."

"Now that," Nathan said, "is something I can help with."

"Perfect," I grinned. "Oh, and here's one you'll like. Number eight: Go to a drive-in movie."

"They still have those?"

"There's one about an hour away," I explained. "I thought it would be fun, you know? All retro and stuff."

"It's a date," Nathan said, then quickly added, "I mean, not a date-date, just... you know what I mean."

I felt my cheeks heat up again. "Yeah, I know what you mean."

We went through the rest of the list, laughing at some of its sillier items, such as 'eat an entire cake by myself' and 'get in a taxi and yell at the driver to follow a random car'.

When we finished, my tears had dried, and I smiled again. That was the thing about Nathan - he always knew how to make me feel better, even when things seemed impossibly dark.

"Thanks, Nate," I said softly. "For everything."

"Anytime, Beth," he replied. "That's what best friends are for, right?"

There was a moment of comfortable silence, and then Nathan spoke again. "Hey, do you want to switch to a video call? I miss your face."

I laughed, feeling a flutter in my stomach. "Sure, but I warn you, I look like a mess."

"You always look beautiful to me," Nathan said, then quickly added, "I mean, you know, in a platonic best friend way."

"Right," I said, rolling my eyes but smiling. "Platonic. Got it."

We switched to video, and suddenly, Nathan's face filled my screen. His messy brown hair was sticking up in all directions, and he wore his favourite old band t-shirt. The sight of him made my heart do that weird flip again.

"See? Told you I look a mess," I said, running a hand through my tangled hair.

Nathan just smiled. "You look perfect."

We kept talking, our voices getting softer as the night wore on. I propped my phone on my bedside table and snuggled onto my blankets. Nathan did the same on his end.

"You sleepy?" he asked, his words slurring slightly.

"Mm," I mumbled, my eyes growing heavy. "A little. You?"

"Yeah," he yawned. "But I don't want to hang up."

"Then don't," I said. "Stay with me."

Nathan's eyes softened. "Always, Beth. I'll always stay with you."

We fell into a comfortable silence, just watching each other breathe. It should have felt weird, but it didn't. It felt... right.

As I drifted off to sleep, the last thing I saw was Nathan's peaceful and beautiful face on my phone screen. For the first time in a while, I looked forward to tomorrow.

Because tomorrow meant another day with Nathan. Another day to live, to laugh, to love.

Another day to make every moment count.

Chapter Ten

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