CHARLIE AND DOUGLAS

     Charlie put the pancakes in a flat plate and handed it over to Douglas. Douglas took it and smiled, but Charlie knew it was a smile that has reached his heart. They were in the dining room eating pancakes. 

       "So... Did you succeed in your search?" 

         "It's as if she disappeared from the surface of the earth," Douglas said and chewed his pancake. 

       "You will get to find her." 

   Douglas has been an unhappy man and Charlie had been following him patience. This particular mood had made Douglas' other relationships to hit the rocks, but he had be tolerant, he knew Douglas had gone through a rough childhood, but he has refused to be open about it. He had known that Doug had a sister whom he didn't even know her whereabouts. 

       He just needed a little more push so Doug would come out of that reclusive area. Doug had also been looking for his mom he had lost his family like he had not even come out from any. Sometimes Charlie wondered how one person could lose a whole family. 

         After eating their meal, Doug had found Faith's coat on the couch and the blanket she had slept with. He had looked at Charlie with a little frown on his face. 

     "Who's are these?" 

   "A friend" Charlie shrugged. He knew that Doug was also a jealous man. 

       "Yes. She was having a bad day and she just showed up and slept off on the couch." 

       Douglas had looked at him. "You keep female friends now?" 

         "Oh, Come on Doug, you and I know I am gay and not attracted to women. Oh, please I don't have the time for this argument right now. It's pointless." Charlie started going up the stairs. "

      "I'm sorry!" Doug called. 

      He loved Doug and was ready to move with him until he was completely alright. He was the one that has convinced Doug to go for therapy, he had talked him into it and it had taken a lot of persuasion. He was hopeful that Doug would one day, be a happy man again and he wanted to be there. 

        Doug followed him up the stairs and his phone started to ring. He took it and looked at it. It was Nora. 

      He showed Doug. "These are the only people I can get close to, women, stop being jealous when I make female friends."

         "I said I'm sorry," Doug pleaded. 

         "You keep doing it. Well, I'll bring her here for you to see. She is not even into me." 

          "No, that was not what I meant." 

          "She is Nora's friend, when I get to work I would drop it off." Before Douglas could talk again, Charlie had answered Nora's call. 

         "Hi, Charlie, are you home?" 

         "Yeah" 

         "Cou you come here I kind? I'm kind of busy." 

           "Now?" 

          "Yes." 

   Charlie looked at Douglas, he was still pleading his eyes. 

         "I'm sorry, I don't think I can make it Nora. I have a lot of things doing." 

       "It's alright, sorry for bothering you." They hung up. 

          After the call, Charlie went and hugged Doug. 

        "What?!" Nora had screamed when she had seen Charlotte's hair. Tears had just started pouring. "Oh, my God you are too young!" she said. 

       Charlotte, Faith and Nora had sat round the living room and Charlotte had removed her wig when Nora had inquired why she called her. 

        "Please, don't make me cry again," Charlotte pleaded. 

       Faith wiped her tears. "Now that we actually know that you have cancer, you look pale to me."

       "This was why I ran away from home to come to a place that no one would know what was wrong with me and no one would remind me. My mom was always crying for me. I keep telling her that whatever would be would be." 

       "Charlotte, cancer is not something you jumped up for. And yours entering the late stage is bad." Nora said. "I pray for a miracle." 

        Charlotte smiled and shook her head. "Miracle had never been on my side, so I don't see it coming. If it was going to happen, it would have happened at the early stage." 

        "What of Ethan?" Nora asked Charlotte. 

        "He went out to pick some things. I don't even understand this special treatment he has been giving me since morning because of this. Honestly, it makes me vulnerable." 

        "You and Ethan need to join hands together in faith." 

  Faith shot her a sharp look. "What join hands again? There is nothing that we can do just to seat around her sick bed." 

        "God can do it." 

         "Alright," Charlotte interrupted. "It's not about God here. I just know I've never been lucky. I keep on struggling for things I want when others get it easily. All my life. When my dad got sick I had prayed for a miracle because he was the only one providing for the family. Mom was kind of crippled on one leg and couldn't work. Valentine and I were in high school. But my dad still died and I had to forfeit college to work and make money for mom's medicals and Valentine's high school tuition. 

       "Then I was diagnosed of cancer, I wanted to kill myself then when I heard it, after all I was going to die anyway, but I had overcome and here I am, taking life like I see it." 

       Faith and Nora wiped their eyes.  

       "You've really suffered." Nora said. 

   Faith thought she was the only one with a painful past. She looked at Charlotte, she was the strongest woman she has ever seen. She shifted closer to Charlotte hugged her tightly and wiped her tears. 

        "You deserve all the happiness you could get." 

       "We would write our own bucket list for you," Nora said. 

    Charlotte snickered in fits of laughter but even as she laughed, tears ran down her cheeks, so did it run down Faith's and Nora's.

    Faith consoled her while she cried. They spent the day talking about what to do and how Charlotte was going to enjoy her last days, whether she was in the hospital or not.