Page 36 of My Best Friend's Brother
“I know, I know. I have a good reason, promise.”
The seconds ticked by as Keke waited to hear Bertie’s reason. “Well?” she insisted after it appeared Bertie was content to leave Keke wondering for eternity.
Bertie shrank back. “It’s not my secret to tell. I shouldn’t even be saying anything because I promised.”
“Spill,” Keke instructed.
Bertie let out a moan of frustration, as though Keke was twisting her arm. “Okay, fine. It’s my mom…”
Keke shivered against the chill that came over her. The way Bertie said “my mom”… Keke held her breath, silently praying it wasn’t as bad as the ominous feeling that stole over her soul.
“She has cancer,” Bertie finished.
Keke swiftly put her hands over her mouth to hide the sound of her gasp. Cancer! “Bertie…” she whispered through her fingers. “Bertie, I’m so sorry.” She could forgive Bertie for lying now. Nothing mattered much against cancer.
“It’s not good either. Not even Dad knows.”
Keke struggled to recall how often she’d seen Mrs. Headley here this week. Only on a couple of occasions. Mr. Headley always lurked around, probably to keep an eye on what his kids were doing. “I haven’t seen her…”
“She spends a lot of time ‘away’ pretending to be working, but she’s actually at home or at the doctor’s. They don’t think she has very long now,” Bertie said quietly, emotion weighing her voice.
Keke struggled to comprehend what she was hearing. Mrs. Headley was…dying? “She didn’t really look…ill.”
Bertie shook her head. “It’s one of those things. You can look perfectly healthy on the outside, but you’re dying on the inside.”
“That’s it? There isn’t any treatment?”
“She’s been getting second and third opinions for a year now. At first, she was misdiagnosed with lupus, and I left school to help around the house and with the camp since she was always so tired. But now…”
“Why doesn’t your dad know?”
Bertie groaned. “Do you think he cares about anything other than this campground? Or advancing our careers—to help this campground? Ugh!” Bertie slammed her fists on the bed. “He was more mad than consoling when he thought Mom had lupus. She couldn’t bear to tell him the truth when the doctors confirmed it was cancer. If he knew she was sick, he’d probably blame it on her for trying to get out of running this camp.That’sthe reason why I asked you to come. She can’t do what she normally does, and we desperately need the help. Especially when Peter goes to Cornell. It’ll be just Dad and me.” She sighed and then sniffed. “This week is especially hard because it’s her last round of tests and she has to be off-site.”
“Of course she does,” Keke agreed quickly. “Nothing else matters.” She lay on her back and stared at the bottom of the bunk above her. Scratched into the wood were the various names of girls who had slept in this bed over the years. Mrs. Headley had been a favorite of the girls, so bright and welcoming. And now she was…dying?
“Anyway, that’s why I left school. I knew she would need a lot of help. She’ll probably…she’ll need it now more than ever when her body…”
Keke hugged her friend close. As a dancer, she knew what the body was capable of. The thought of it deteriorating and not being able to function scared Keke right to her core. Her eyes stung at the sound of Bertie’s soft sobbing.
“Don’t worry…” Keke stopped herself. Of course her friend would worry. Her mother was slowly dying in front of her eyes. What could Keke say to help soothe the pain? “Whatever you need, Bertie. I’m here for you.” Even if it meant staying here. Missing the audition to help with the camp. Her best friend needed her support, and that was more important.
Bertie sniffed and wiped her eyes. “Thanks, Keke. I’ve been preparing for this for a long time now. All I need you to do is keep it to yourself.”
“Right. Your father shouldn’t know. He’s already high-strung.”
“No,” Bertie said insistently. “Don’t tell Peter.”
Peter didn’t know? Keke was silent. How could Pete not know his mother was dying?
“Mom doesn’t want him to worry. She wants him to get out of here and live his dreams.”
“You know about the app?”
“I do, yes. Mom probably does, but I know Pete’s keeping the details to himself in case it doesn’t pan out. He doesn’t want to give our dad any more ammo to push Cornell. To tell you the truth, I want Pete to go to Cornell.”
“Why? Pete isn’t excited at all about school.”
“I know, but it’ll set him up in the long run. Anyway, it’s less about school and more about how he’s on the verge of living his dream and Dad wants him to go in another direction—the one he didn’t take. Either way, if Pete found out, he wouldn’t do either.”
