"I'm afraid that your hereditary macular dystrophy has worsen quicker than we anticipated. You're going to lose your sight, Artemis. I apologize, but I fear you're going to go completely blind. It's only a matter of time. There are some things we can try-"
The doctor's voice faded out as Artemis Bradshaw's stared down at the blurred floor covered in black spots. She took off her useless glasses and rubbed her strained eyes, fighting the sense of overwhelming panic that threatened to wash over her. It made it difficult to breathe as tears burned her eyes.
A strong, familiar hand landed on her shoulder. She reached up and grabbed hold of it as if it was a lifeline to keep her from drowning.
"Is there anything that can be done?" The soothing baritone of her best friend's, William's, voice asked from where he stood beside her. He had refused to allow her to come by herself when she had nearly walked straight into a wall that she hadn't seen past the widening black spots that threatened to consume her entire vision.
She clung to his hand, tighter than she knew she should. But his quiet strength soothed her from the fear of being completely lost in the darkness that threatened to take over in more ways than one.
"There was some operations we can do to slow it down-"
"Is there anything to reverse it?" Her voice lacked all strength, barely able to interrupt the doctors answer. The silence that met her fearful question was stark and apologetic.
"Unfortunately, as of now, this is incurable. All we can do is try to slow it."
"But…I'm going to lose my sight, completely?" Artemis could barely voice the words out. "Why is this happening to me?"
"More than likely, because of your young age, it's hereditary. We can do blood tests to be sure if you want."
"Will it make any difference?"
Another potent pause in which Artemis felt hope slipping away, leaving stark coldness.
"No, and unless we have DNA from a parent, or sibling-"
"They're gone." Artemis whispered hoarsely. It felt as if her entire world was crashing in upon her like a crushing weight she couldn't get out from underneath, not even for a moment.
She sensed Will sit on the edge of the exam table beside her, allowing her to grip his hand deathly tight. She could only imagine his fingers were aching, but he didn't attempt to tug it back, and instead, gave her hand a gentle squeeze as if trying to tell her that she wasn't alone.
"How long?" William asked the question that he somehow knew she was too terrified to ask aloud. She was even more terrified of the answer.
The doctor sighed softly, his apology in the air long before his words. "Not long. Judging by how Artemis's sight has degraded so rapidly just over the past month, it won't be long before her sight is completely gone. We can attempt to slow it down with a couple different therapy's, however, there is no guarantee it will work. I advise that you start to prepare yourself."
"Prepare myself?" The watery, mirthless words bubbled out layered with disbelief. "How can I possibly prepare myself for this?"
"I know this is frightening-"
"How could you know?" Artemis demanded in an out of character lash of anger. "You can still see, can't you?"
"Hey, Art," Will murmured, affectionately using the nickname that had always been used to irritate her, but now it was in an attempt to soothe, "it's not his fault."
"I know, you're right." Then added to the doctor; "I'm sorry."
"It is completely understandable. This is extremely frightening, but there is things we can do to improve your quality of life." Artemis scoffed and rolled her eyes at the doctors' reassurances, letting them dart around the blurred room, the dark splotches taking it over. She turned her head to look at Will, only to find a large dark splotch over where his face was.
When was the last time she saw his face clearly?
"And," the doctor added in an attempt to lighten the mood, "you have your boyfriend here. He seems to care about you greatly."
"Oh, uh," William cleared his throat uncomfortably, carefully extracting his hand from hers and she reluctantly let it go, "we're not a couple. I'm just her friend, a good friend. And," Will bumped his shoulder to hers, and she could hear his grin in his voice, "I am here. I'm not going anywhere."
She wouldn't see that goofy grin of his again, she realized. Her bottom lip began to tremble, and she covered her mouth with her hand, feeling a tear slip from her eyes.
"I will give you two a moment," the doctor said, "and when I come back, we can talk about ways to prepare you."
She just shook her head in disbelief, squeezing her eyes shut to block out the blurriness. The stark realization that this, this blackness, was going to be her future, destroyed what composure she had left.
His arm came up around her shoulders, tugging her to his side. She caved in, leaning against him, resting her cheek on his chest, breathing in the scent of the fabric of his shirt, mixed with the smell of cologne that she had always appreciated. It wasn't overpowering but pleasant.
"It's going to be alright, Art." He murmured soothingly. "I'm going to be with you through every step of this, alright. You are not alone here. I'm not going anywhere."
She sniffed and nodded, but his reassuring words did little to ease the emotions roiling within her. She didn't want him to know that, though. He was trying to understand so hard. It had to be awkward for him, considering their history.
They sat there for a long moment just like that, waiting for the doctor to return.
"So," Will sighed, trying to fill in the silence that was becoming awkward, "how's your story coming?"
The reminder of what else she was going to lose, made her pull away from him. She slipped from the exam table and put her glasses back on that did extremely little to help as she moved to the window. The bright light was just that, just light, making her flinch. But she didn't care about the sensitivity any longer, because soon, she wouldn't even be able to see that.
"What's the point?" She muttered with a shrug. "There is no point in continuing it. It's just a stupid story, anyway."
"But you were really getting into it. I mean you've been planning that story for years."
"How am I supposed to write it?" Artemis spun around to glare at him, then nearly laughed at herself, realizing she would only be glaring in his general direction. "I can barely see anything as it is, Will. I can't even read, anymore. How am I supposed to see what the hell I'm writing?"
"You can't give up on everything you enjoy just because of this, Art. I'll help you write it. It was starting to mean a lot to you. You were putting a lot of time into it. Let me help you."
"Why does it matter?" Artemis demanded harsher than was warranted, but she couldn't help it. Her emotions had to go somewhere, and she hated that Will was the only target for them. "It's just a stupid story, Will. Just…let it die. It's pointless. Just…" she sighed heavily with a defeated scoff, "let it die."