The Stray I Took In Corners Me on the Couch Chapter 2

Two months ago, when I received my leukemia diagnosis, I didn't feel much sadness. If anything, I felt relieved that I could finally leave this miserable world with a legitimate reason.

But in these last days, I wanted to be selfish for once and do all those things I had only ever written down in my notebook.

I wanted to see the breathtaking sunrise over the mountains and the endless expanse of the ocean.

Perhaps the heavens didn't want me to be too lonely in my final days and sent me a companion.

After entering my apartment, I told him to quickly take a shower. In this weather, catching a cold would be miserable.

I gave him my largest T-shirt and pants, but they were still a bit short on him. It would have to do for now.

I planned to take him shopping for suitable clothes tomorrow.

After his shower, he looked damp and vulnerable, his doe-like eyes darting around, clearly wary of his surroundings. It stirred a strange protective instinct in me.

I handed him a glass of warm water and brought out some instant noodles I had just prepared.

"Eat this to warm up your stomach, you got pretty soaked in the rain earlier."

"By the way, I'm Emily. What's your name?"

"I'm Ethan, miss," the young man replied, his voice low and somewhat muffled, as if speaking from inside a glass dome.

After he finished eating, I took the bowl to clean up. When I came back, he had already fallen asleep on the table, his arms wrapped around his neck in an awkward position.

Not wanting to wake him, I draped a blanket over his shoulders and turned up the temperature on the living room heater.

...

The next morning, I woke up with a nosebleed that wouldn't stop. The medicine I took last night didn't seem to have any effect.

I finally managed to stop the bleeding, but my whole body felt boneless. I collapsed on the floor with a loud thud.

There was frantic knocking at the door.

"Emily? Are you okay?"

It had been so long since anyone cared about me that I felt a bit uncomfortable. I didn't want to open the door and let him see me in such a pale and haggard state.

I suppressed the taste of blood in my throat and steadied my voice to tell him I was fine.

"I just tripped and fell."

I applied some light makeup to look more lively.

Ethan was sitting obediently in the living room waiting for me, still wearing the clothes from last night, looking a bit comical.

I stared at him, the corners of my eyes lifting slightly as I smiled.

Seeing me trying to hold back laughter, he looked down at his clothes and pouted in disappointment.

"Mine aren't dry yet, I can't wear them."

"Alright, let's go out and buy you some new ones now."

I took him to the mall to buy a few sets of clothes. I had to admit, the young man was very handsome with his pale skin, doe-like eyes, and a smile as bright as the stars. No wonder he was hard to refuse.

We also went to the supermarket to buy some ingredients. I planned to make hot pot for dinner, something I had been craving for a long time but never had anyone to share it with. Now that I finally had the chance, I was determined to enjoy it to the fullest.

During dinner, Ethan and I both had our mouths and throats burning from the spice. We kept drinking ice water to try to cool down, but the fire only seemed to spread to our ears, tormenting us to no end.

He was drinking water but still managed to tease me.

"Emily, you're such a wimp."

"You're not doing much better yourself," I retorted.

Looking at each other's disheveled state, we couldn't help but burst into laughter, the sound echoing through the room.

It seemed that because of his arrival, my final days had gained a glimmer of hope.