Blue and Gray Waves - Prologue

"Mr. Rashid, can you please come with me, Ms. Selena wants to talk with you," the nice blond nurse came to the waiting room with a grave expression and a clipboard held in her hand.

"Daddy, what's the matter with her?" Lisa turned her face to her father, her big eyes wide, "Why is she looking so sympathetically at me?"

"Oh, honey, it is their duty to look grave," Mr. Rashid put a comforting hand on his daughter's shoulder as he said, "Well, you can't expect them to look cheerful in the hospital, do you? Think where their reputation will go."

"But daddy, Ms. Tabitha was always so cheerful when she was with mom, right? And her reputation was fine, oh, maybe she swallowed some medicine accidentally which makes her look so woebegone." Lisa's eyes twinkled as she looked at her dad.

"Well, sweetie..." Mr. Rashid stopped at the throat-clearing.

"Um, sir can you please pardon me, but Mrs. Selena is expecting us." Now there was sort of sad smile playing on the corner of the nurse's mouth.

Lisa's face flushed red as she realized that the nurse had been in hearing distance and had probably heard her every word...

"Oh, sure, sure, I am coming, you sit here honey, let me go to see Ms. Selena." Mr. Rashid gave another pat on her shoulder and then made his way to the glass door.

"Oh, wait, wait, daddy, can't I come too?"

"Sorry Lisa, but I think it is better if your father comes alone, you just sit here tight, we will be with you presently." The nurse gave another sad smile at her and then the both of them were gone.

Lisa took a magazine from the table in front of her, and not to her surprise, she was bored even before she completed reading the first sentence. How come her friends spend hours reading magazines while she can't even complete reading one page?

There was a full-page photo of Angelina Jolie and a caption reading something about her and Brad Pitt. Some magazine to keep in the hospital!

For some reason her mind switched on the young nurse's grave face when she called her father. Lisa bit her bottom lip as she contemplated what the news might be. Probably they are just prescribing some medicines to her father. The past doctors had done it. But in here it must be the style not to talk with her.

So there must be nothing wrong with her. The past doctors had said that. Lisa wished her father hadn't brought her to such an expensive place, why she's perfectly healthy... she'd argued about it a lot with her father, just because her mother had been sick, doesn't mean she is too, but no, her father wouldn't listen to her. And now see what happened, she had given x-rays, blood-tests etc. probably for nothing but just a common cold. Oh, whatever.

To distract herself she took another magazine from the table. Maybe she'll find something interesting in here. Yup, at least there were some recipes in here, Asian cuisine.

Her father had really enjoyed that South Asian Chicken Kurma she had previously made. She looked at the photos and that rice and meat dish called, "Kacchi biryani," looked terrific to her. The list of all the ingredients was a big one and it'd probably be a challenge to acquire all those, not to say about the cooking. Well, Lisa Rashid enjoys a good challenge as well as cooking and her daddy enjoys homemade good dish. She took the navy blue notepad and the pilot pen from her back pack and was halfway to the making procedure, when that nurse came again.

"Lisa, would you mind coming with me, dear?" The blond asked her.

"Oh, of course not, but may I finish writing this?" Lisa showed the recipe and a cough came from her throat along with a bitter taste.

"Well, you should come now, and here, you don't have to write it, here it is". To Lisa's surprise the nurse tore the page and handed it to her.

"Oh thank you so much," putting the page in her backpack she followed the nurse.

Lisa had a tendency to look around her and this time she was looking at everything with interest. But for some reason she wished she could stop the nurse and also the time. She felt like something was gradually slipping from her as she made her way on the linoleum floor.

"Here we are," the nurse pushed an oak door and Lisa entered the room with her. And knew immediately something was terribly wrong. Her gaze first went to her father. And Lisa felt a big fist punched on her chest.

"Daddy, what's wrong with you?" Lisa cried out as she stumbled to the chair her father sat nearly crumbled.

Her father turned his face to her and just looked at his 15 years old daughter. And for the second time Lisa found her chest being punched, but this time by a boulder.

"Daddy," she whispered. "What's it?"

"Mr. Rashid, you have to be strong," the elderly nurse came to put a hand on Lisa's shoulder, "For the sake of your daughter, for her, you have to be very strong."

At those words Lisa understood that nothing had happened to her daddy to make him look like that.

No. Something has happened to her.

"What's it?" She repeated again. Her voice felt choked.
Something is coming to her. Something very fierce.
The elderly nurse just looked at her.

"Lisa," the blond nurse swallowed hard.
She darted her gaze to her and felt her whole being choked. Doctors and nurses aren't supposed to have tears in their eyes, right?

"What's it?" Why are they torturing her like that. Why they just don't tell her? So she wouldn't be so choked. She could breathe again.

"I am... we are... very sorry, but Lisa it seems..." No, No. Stop it. Doesn't that stupid woman know that Lisa doesn't want to hear it after all.

It is coming. It will come with the words.

"Lisa," she started again, but stopped at the wild look in those blue eyes.

"We are very sorry, but we know that you are strong, so we are going confide to you," it is that elderly Ms. Selena speaking.

Why do both of them has to talk?

"It seem... your tests show... we are positive that you have," Lisa looked at the name on the badge on the blond blue t-shirt. It reads Tina.

Doesn't Tina knows Lisa doesn't want it to come.

"You have..."

Lisa bit her lower lip. This time Ms. Selena also stopped.

It is here. That thing is here now.

"Okay, tell me," she replied calmly. She swept the blood from her lower lip. She was very calm.

Why does it matter anymore, it can't be stopped, it has to come.

She looked at her daddy. He was still staring at her with those lifeless eyes. She went to stand beside him and put an arm around him.

"Just tell me, okay, I can cope."

She has to be the strong one now. For both of them.

Why does it matter anymore, it has to come...
Right?