Page 96 of The Life Experiment
‘Is it work?’ Maya pushed. ‘I thought your project was going well? Didn’t you just get a miscarriage leave policy approved?’
Layla sighed. ‘We did, yeah.’
‘So, what’s the problem? Why are you in bed when it’s almost lunchtime? Is it to do with Angus?’
Layla shot her sister a sideways look. ‘Not everything relates to men, you know.’
‘I know that. Christ, I’ve not had a boyfriend in years and look how happy I am! All I’m saying is, last time I saw you, you and Angus were talking nonstop, but you’ve not messaged him once since I arrived. Is he away or something?’
Layla’s shoulders tensed at the innocent question. ‘Drop it, Maya.’
‘No,’ Maya said, shuffling closer. ‘I’m worried. Talk to me. Please.’
Layla thought she could ignore her sister’s pleas, but when Maya pulled at the duvet once more, something inside Layla snapped. ‘I said drop it! What part of that don’t you understand?!’ she cried, sitting up so quickly she nearly knocked Maya from the bed.
‘Watch it,’ Maya protested, but her anger faded as she eyed her sister. Concern dipped Maya’s brows. ‘What’s going on, Layla? And don’t dismiss me. I know you. I know when something is wrong. What aren’t you telling me?’
A rebuttal sprang to Layla’s mind, but she couldn’t bring herself to push Maya away again. As Layla looked into her sister’s sharp eyes, the words she had struggled to contain since learning her death date bubbled in her throat.
Layla knew she couldn’t say anything. There were just under two weeks left of the experiment. She had to stay quiet. If she didn’t, she would break a legally binding contract. She would leave herself ineligible for the experiment’s benefits.
But Layla was tired of carrying this secret alone. She was so, so tired.
‘I only have two years left to live.’
The words erupted from Layla as if a dam had broken. In the aftermath, Layla waited to feel guilt or dread or any of the other awful feelings she had convinced herself she would feel if she let the truth out.
Instead, Layla simply felt at peace.
Maya stared at Layla for what felt like an eternity. ‘What?’ she asked, a strange, disbelieving smile stretching her mouth. ‘What are you talking about?’
‘I only have two years left to live,’ Layla repeated.
‘Layla, you’re scaring me now,’ Maya said, her voice wobbly.
Taking a deep breath, Layla came clean about the experiment. She broke every clause of her NDA, but she was past caring about legalities. Let Saira sue her. She’d probably be dead by the time the case made it to court, anyway.
But the more Layla spoke, the more Maya’s face relaxed. After hearing Layla’s explanation, Maya simply looked up from the OPM Discoveries website Layla had loaded on her phone and blinked.
‘Is this supposed to convince me it isn’t bullshit?’ she said.
‘You don’t believe me?’
‘I don’t believe any of this crap. It’s like going to a fortune teller and believing you’ll meet a handsome stranger when you least expect it.’
‘It’s not like that at all. They did tests and everything.’
Maya scoffed. ‘Come on, Layla. I thought you were smarter than this.’
‘Maya, it’s a legitimate study. OPM Discoveries is a research lab. They’ve won more awards than I can count. They ran a million and one tests.’
‘So? Tests are wrong all the time. Tests can’t take into account every random part of life. Think about it. You could walk across the road tonight and get hit by a bus.’
‘The experiment analyses your biological date of death. Obviously OPM Discoveries can’t control the randomness of life, but they can make an assessment based on health data and—’
Maya’s wry laughter interrupted Layla’s train of thought. ‘Surely you can’t really believe this?’ she asked, but when Maya looked into her sister’s terrified eyes, she saw that she did. Turning the phone to Layla, Maya pointed to a photo of Saira. ‘This is the person in charge of the study? Saira Khatri?’
Layla nodded.
