Chapter Text
Chapter 1
In Aberdale, a quiet suburb of Boston, the leaves were beginning to carpet the sidewalks, and the crisp air signaled the end of summer. Wirt Wood and Sara Brundige, eleven–year–olds starting sixth grade at Walt Whitman Elementary, were already close friends, though there was no hint of romantic attraction between them yet. At the start of that year, they began to frequently run into a new girl at recess, Elaine Emmons, who had transferred from another school in the suburb of Brighton. Elaine had pretty, straight blonde hair tied in a pink bow, and she wore a light blue T–shirt with a rainbow print, a purple skirt with matching tights underneath, and white sneakers with blue and pink stripes.
Elaine had a contagious smile and a habit of making those who were alone feel included. If she saw someone sitting by themselves, she would naturally approach them.
"Can I sit here?" he asked one afternoon, approaching Wirt, who was reading a book under a tree. The brown–haired boy looked up, surprised.
"Of course..." he replied, to which Elaine smiled.
–"What are you reading, Wirt?"
–"Robin Hood. It's one of my favorite books; I love his adventures. What do you like to read, Elaine?"
– My favorite books are Matilda and The Worm Charmers. I also really like comics; my favorite is Peanuts .
– "I like Peanuts a lot too, especially Snoopy. Aren't they funny?" Wirt asked, amazed by his new friend's tastes. They continued chatting for several minutes , and soon after, Sara appeared with a ball in her hands.
– "Do you want to play when you're finished?" asked the dark–skinned girl.
– "Yes!" Elaine replied before Wirt could say anything. And so, the three of them played with the ball until it was time to go back to class.
As the weeks went by, the three of them began spending more time together. They drew during art class, shared lunch, and played in the yard. Elaine had a huge imagination and was always suggesting new games.
– "When I grow up," she said, laughing, "I want to help people. I don't know how yet... maybe by being a doctor or a teacher."
– "You'd be good at either one," Sara replied, smiling.
One October morning, Wirt and Sara arrived at the school entrance just as class was starting. Elaine was waiting for them there. Wirt and Sara hugged her, and then she told them that she had accidentally bumped her arm the night before and had gotten a bruise, which she thought was strange. Sara told her to go see the nurse during the day so she could have it checked and maybe put some ointment on it to make it go away. The three of them walked to their classroom together as soon as the bell rang. A little while later, while Ms. Brooks was explaining math, Elaine slowly raised her hand.
– "Yes, Elaine?" the teacher asked.
– "I feel... very tired".
The girl's face was unusually pale, and a trickle of blood was running from her right nostril. The teacher approached immediately.
– "Come on, Elaine, let's go to the nurse's office".
Before she could stand, Elaine lost her balance. Ms. Brooks and Mr. Mateo, the Spanish teacher, who was passing by in the hallway, managed to catch her before she fell. The class fell silent, as they had never witnessed anything like it. Sara looked worriedly toward the door as they took her friend away.
– "I hope she's alright..." she whispered. Wirt nodded, unsure what to say.
At the nurse's office, Dr. Ackerman examined Elaine and took her temperature. She had a fever. She quickly called the girl's parents, who arrived and rushed her to the hospital.
That same day, Principal Verselis briefly gathered the group.
– "Children, I want to let you all know that Elaine is feeling very unwell and has been taken to the hospital for some tests. Her parents are with her. We'll let you know as soon as we have more information".
The children spent the rest of the day restless.
For several days, Elaine's seat remained empty. Wirt and Sara felt sadness and worry, knowing that being in the hospital wasn't exactly a pleasant experience. When Wirt was four, he accidentally fell while playing on the sidewalk outside his house and cut his forehead, causing a bleeding wound. His parents rushed him to the hospital where they disinfected, stitched, and bandaged the wound, though little Wirt clearly cried from the pain, not to mention when, days later, they had to remove the stitches. Meanwhile, something similar happened to Sara when she was seven. She was playing on the monkey bars when she got distracted and let go, falling and tearing a ligament in her knee. In her case, she had to undergo surgery and physical rehabilitation, but fortunately, she had no lasting effects and continued to be a very active child.
A week later, Ms. Brooks returned with a serene expression, although visibly sad.
– "I want to tell you something about Elaine. The doctors discovered that she has a disease called leukemia".
Some students exchanged confused glances. Sara raised her hand.
– "What's that?"
The teacher responded with simple words.
– "Leukemia is a type of cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow, where blood cells are produced. That's why Elaine felt very tired and needed to stay in the hospital. Now she will receive special treatment to help her".
The room fell completely silent. Wirt looked down at his desk; he had heard the word "cancer," but he hadn't known it was such a serious disease.
– "Is she going to come back?" Sara asked shyly.
The teacher paused.
– "We all hope so. The doctors will do everything they can to help her".
In the classroom, while waiting for their next class, Wirt and Sara talked about what was happening to their new friend.
– "It must be something that's making her feel really bad to be in the hospital," Wirt said.
– "A friend of my mom had cancer, but he managed to recover," Sara recalled.
After a few seconds, Wirt added:
– "Do you think we could go and visit her?"
– "Maybe... if her parents say yes," Sara replied, smiling slightly.
– "We should take her some drawings. Elaine has always liked them, especially the ones of kittens."
– "Yes... I think she would like that very much – Wirt replied.
When Wirt's parents arrived at school to pick up both children—they lived very close to each other, and Sara's parents arrived home later from work—Wirt asked Jonathan if he could take them to the hospital to see Elaine one day. His stepfather agreed, and a couple of days later, on a Friday after school, they were taken to the hospital by Wirt's parents, who approached the reception desk and asked if the patient Elaine Emmons could receive visitors. Once the receptionist said yes, they went to the fourth floor of the hospital, where the children's ward was located, and walked to room 406.
The hospital room where Elaine was staying was bathed in the afternoon light streaming through the window. On the bedside table sat a vase of flowers, several children's books, and a stack of drawings sent in by her classmates. Elaine sat on the bed in light blue pajamas and looked up when someone gently knocked on the door.
– "Can we come in?" Sara asked.
– "Of course!" Elaine replied with a smile.
Wirt and Sara entered somewhat timidly. Sara was carrying a paper bag decorated with colorful stars.
– "We brought you something," Sara said, handing it to her.
Elaine opened the bag excitedly.
– "Honey cookies! They're my favorites! And you draw pictures for me too?"
Sara pulled out one where the three of them appeared playing under a large tree in the schoolyard.
– "Wirt did this one... and I colored this other one" – Sara explained.
Elaine's eyes sparkled.
– "I'm going to stick them on the wall so I can see them every day".
A moment later, Elaine's mother appeared, a blonde–haired woman named Janice.
– "I'll leave you two to chat for a while," she said kindly before leaving the room to greet and talk with Wirt's parents.
For a few seconds no one spoke. Finally, Wirt broke the silence.
– "How... how are you feeling?"
Elaine took a deep breath.
– "Some days are good, others are difficult".
– "The teacher told us you have leukemia... but we didn't really understand what that means," Sara said.
Elaine nodded.
– "The doctors explained it to me in a way I could understand. Inside the bones there's a part called bone marrow, which makes blood cells. Mine started producing cells that shouldn't be there, and that's why I got so sick, and that's also why I had so many bruises and nosebleeds."
Wirt listened very attentively.
– "And how is that cured?"
Elaine pointed to the small stand next to her bed, where a bag of medicine connected to an IV line hung.
– "With very strong medicines. It's called chemotherapy. Its job is to destroy the diseased cells so that my body can produce healthy blood again".
Sara looked at the tube with concern.
– "Does that hurt?"
– "Sometimes not. Other times I feel very tired or nauseous. It also makes my hair fall out; that's a normal side effect of the treatment. When they did the tests, they extracted bone marrow with a syringe that's injected into your hip until it reaches the bone. That did really hurt."
Instinctively, Sara lowered her gaze as Wirt felt grossed out at the thought of what Elaine had gone through. The boy wasn't exactly known for his high pain tolerance.
– "It must be very difficult..." Sara said.
Elaine remained silent for a few seconds, but then smiled again.
– "Yes... it's scary sometimes. But I also know that the doctors, the nurses, and my parents are doing everything they can to help me," Elaine replied, looking happily at the drawing she had been given. She looked at her friends with determination.
– "And I'm going to do my part too".
– "Which one?" Wirt asked.
– "Not to give up."
The two children watched her in silence.
– "I'm going to take my medicine, I'm going to follow all the instructions, and I'm going to be strong. I want to get better so I can go back to school and keep playing with you and the other children at school".
Sara smiled.
– "We miss you so much".
– "I miss you too".
Elaine pointed to the drawing where the three of them appeared.
– "I want to play with you again at recess. And finish the mural we started in art class".
– "I still have the colors you were going to use," Wirt replied with a small smile.
– "Then don't spend them," Elaine replied with a laugh. "I'm going to need them when I get back."
The three of them laughed together for the first time since the visit began. Before leaving, Sara took her friend's hand.
– "We'll come whenever we can".
– "And if we can't come," Wirt added, "we'll write you letters and bring you our school notes."
– "Thank you," Elaine replied, with a lump of emotion in her throat.
When Wirt and Sara left the room, they glanced back one last time. Elaine was still smiling as she placed the drawing on the wall, next to the others.
Although the treatment would be long and demanding, seeing her speak with such hope made them understand that their friend wasn't defined by her illness, but by the enormous courage with which she was determined to face it and one day return to those who loved her so much. As they left the room, Wirt's parents said goodbye to Elaine's parents and returned home with the children.