“It’s on hold at the moment,” he admitted. “I try to make time for it when I can.”
My heart sank. I wasn’t going to see it finished.That realization didn’t hit me like it once would have. It just… remained there.
Sitting in the yard, I let the sunlight warm what little strength I had left in my body. I turned my head slightly and looked at him.“Thank you,” I said quietly. “For being here… and helping her out by taking care of me.”
He shook his head immediately.“Hey,” he said. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. You’re my big brother and my family. I want to be here.”
I held his gaze for a moment. I hoped—more than anything—that he would never have to go through this.
Our father had died from pancreatic cancer.Our mother from breast cancer.It felt like a cruel pattern, one I didn’t want repeated in his life.
I silently prayed that it would end with me. That he would be spared.That he would be strong when I was gone and not let this break him the way it could.
“Will you do me a favour?” I asked after a moment.
He nodded without hesitation.
“Can you please make sure you check up on Jiya and the kids… after I’m gone?”
He exhaled, shaking his head slightly.“First of all, you didn’t even have to ask. That’s a given,” he said firmly. “And second…” he paused, his tone shifting deliberately, “let’s not talk about that right now.”
I opened my mouth to respond, but he cut me off with a small smirk.
“Let’s talk about you and that ridiculous Mohawk you had in college,” he continued. “You remember? When you were trying to impress your girlfriend by telling her you were in a band?”
A laugh escaped me before I could stop it.“Hey, that worked,” I said weakly, shaking my head.
He raised an eyebrow. “Did it though?”
We both laughed then, the sound lighter than anything we had shared in days.
And for a little while, we let ourselves drift back to those moments—to the stupid hairstyles, the ridiculous stories, the excuses we had made back then.
To a time when life had felt endless.
For a little while… we forgot.
And that, in itself, felt like a gift.
I foundmyself looking forward to the weekend more than I had in a long time.
Elle’s family, Liam’s family, Jack and Maureen—they were all coming over.
The house would be full.
Full of voices, laughter, joy.
Full of life.
And I needed that.
Because in a place I tried not to visit too often, I knew my time was near.
I had already called Marjorie and Andrea, leaving them detailed instructions about the charity event. I had gone over everything carefully, making sure nothing was left unfinished, nothing left uncertain. It gave me a sense of peace knowing that something I had started would still go on… even after I couldn’t.
Physically, I was barely holding on.
The pain was constant now, a quiet companion that never left. My body had grown weaker, slower, less reliable with each passing day, like a machine finally wearing down. Even the smallest tasks felt like battles I didn’t always win.
