Sienna could hardly believe her ears. “Oh? Is everything alright?”
Eleanor gave her a sad smile. “Unfortunately, no.”
The long pause that followed instantly told her the news—whatever it was—wasn’t going to be good.
“My cancer is back,” she said before exhaling. “I always knew it was a possibility, but I didn’t expect it to be this soon.”
Eleanor had battled and beat breast cancer ten years ago, and as far as Sienna knew, she had been 100% healthy ever since.
“I don’t understand,” Sienna said after a moment. “You go for annual checkups. You had the double mastectomy.”
With a curt nod, Eleanor reached for her cup of tea and took a sip. “It’s my pancreas and it’s stage four. I skipped the last two years' worth of doctor appointments because of professional commitments.” Then she let out a mirthless laugh. “And, if we’re being honest, arrogance. I thought I had this beat.”
Reaching out, she squeezed her friend’s hand. “Oh, Eleanor. What can I do? What’s the prognosis?”
“Three months.”
Shock held Sienna immobile for a solid minute. “I...I don’t even know what to say. How are you doing? How are you so calm right now?”
Another small laugh was her friend’s immediate response. “I’m a scientist, Sienna. I understand what’s happening and I’ve had some time to come to grips with it.” Her expression turned thoughtful. “It’s you I’m worried about.”
That was the absolute last thing she expected to hear.
“Me? Why?”
“Because you’re following my path and as I’ve been sitting and looking back on my life, I see the mistakes I’ve made. It’s too late for me, but not for you. You’re still young...”
“You’re not that much older than me, El.”
“Almost twenty years,” Eleanor corrected.
“Still...I don’t see where you or I have made life-altering mistakes.”
“When was the last time you did something just for fun? Or bought yourself something frivolous?” She paused for a moment. “I wish I had gone and had a torrid affair with a Greek man named Nico, or taken salsa lessons or learned to do the tango.” She grinned. “And then had a torrid affair with a beautiful Latino man named Mateo.”
Sienna was starting to notice a pattern here.
“I never went to Disneyland or to the top of the Empire State Building. I never sat and binged shows like Sex and the City or gone out for a girls’ night where we went to dinner and a movie to see the latest rom-com.” She laughed softly. “I never let myself fall in love or hold a newborn baby in my arms.” Tears shone brightly in her eyes. “And now...I never will.”
This time, it was Eleanor reaching out and clasping Sienna’s hand.
“Take the trips, Sienna. Dance in the rain, make love to a man with wild abandon, live your life, fall in love...don’t give all of your heart to this job—this field of research. Give your heart to everything this world has to offer. Open yourself to new experiences—not for the sake of learning, but for the memories.” She gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Promise me. Promise me you’ll do it. Tomorrow isn’t promised, and I’d hate to think of you having regrets later on like I am.”
She fought back her own tears. “I promise. I promise you, Eleanor, that I will.”
But in that moment, she wasn’t sure she could actually follow through on any of it.
“Only one way to find out,” she murmured to herself as she waited for the elevator. There were easily a hundred people waiting with her, so, rather than stand in the crowd, Sienna decided the stairs weren’t a bad option.
Even though her feet were screaming from wearing heels all day.
“Just because I’m a neuropsychologist, doesn’t mean I don’t love pretty shoes.”
Stepping out into the lobby, she looked around to get her bearings and spotted the bar. As expected, it was crowded, but she wasn’t deterred.
At least not at first.
After waiting for over twenty minutes just to get near the bar, she glanced toward the lobby and wondered if she should just go someplace else. It was New York City and there certainly wasn’t any shortage of places to eat and drink, so maybe she should cut her losses and go.
But because she was an over-thinker, she pulled out her phone to search for what specifically was close by. No need to wander around aimlessly.
That’s when she noticed she’d missed a bunch of texts and calls.
“That can’t be good.”
She smiled when she saw they were from her brother Jason, but then instantly feared something was wrong since he seemed desperate to reach her.
First, she read the texts.
Jason: Are you seriously here in NY and you didn’t call?
“Oops...”
Jason: Where are you staying?
Jason: When is the conference over?
Jason: Any chance you’re free for dinner? Bree and I would love to see you.
Sighing, Sienna noted that all the texts were from two hours ago before scrolling over to listen to the voicemails he’d left.
“Hey! Why did I have to hear from Mom and Dad that you were in town?” he asked with just the right mix of humor and hurt. “Seriously, I’m sure you’re busy with the conference, but we’d love to see you. Call me when you get this.”
Looking up, she saw that there was little to no hope of getting near the hotel bar anytime soon and stepped out of the line. Walking over to one of the sofas, she sat and listened to Jason’s second message.
“Okay, so clearly, you’re really busy. I’ll tell you what, we’re having dinner at Carmine’s in Times Square. We’ve got reservations for 7:00. Please try to join us. It’s been far too long since we’ve seen each other in person. Hope to see you then. Bye.”
It was almost five, but that still gave her time to go up to her room to freshen up and change. Standing, she walked over to the bank of elevators and was relieved that there were no lines. Her room was up on the fifth floor, and even though this particular Marriott was massive, her room wasn’t overly lavish. It was fine for sleeping, but not a place she wanted to spend her downtime.
The invitation to dinner was a nice surprise and once she was in her room with her shoes off, she tapped out a quick text to her brother.
Sienna: Sorry I missed your messages, but I am looking forward to catching up with you and Bree over dinner. I’ll meet you there! xoxo
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to see her brother and his wife, or that she purposely didn’t reach out to them. It was just...
Sigh.
Sienna knew she tended to get hyper-focused when she attended conferences, and it probably would have occurred to her to call Jason sometime over the next two weeks while she was off.
He just beat her to it.
Still, it was going to be nice to spend some time with him and Bree over some good Italian food. Carmine’s was a favorite of theirs, and she found it sweet that he made a reservation for them someplace he knew she’d enjoy.
Jason was always sweet. In the sibling lottery, Sienna knew she truly hit the jackpot with having him as an older brother. They were five years apart in age, but because she had skipped two grades in school, they were probably closer than they would have been. He never made her feel weird about her intellect or how awkward she could be at times, and he always accepted how her studying and career sometimes left her too distracted to remember to pick up the phone and call.