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Isabel whisked the paper away and tucked it back into the envelope.

She planned to frame it, eventually, but with every spare penny going into the ‘Fly to Italy to See the Hot Artist’ fund, framing would have to wait.

“Don’t forget how funny he is, too. He really leaned into my vampire joke.

Though I have to admit, I’m not entirely convinced he’s the Sebastian featured in the Louvre.

I mean, he’s barely older than us! As far as I know… ”

“Well, obviously you’ll have to check out this dungeon of his and see if he’s bluffing. Just don’t let him lock you up if he’s not going to at least spank you a little while you’re down there.”

“Melody!” Isabel threw a pillow at her friend’s head as Melody cackled and used another couch pillow as a shield.

“I don’t even know if I’m into spanking, thank you very much!

In any case, the sketch is good enough that even if he was just trying to impress me, he wouldn’t need to lie to accomplish his goal.

” She let out a small sigh, which earned a smirk from Melody.

In return, she lowered her eyebrows into a glare.

The pair remained locked in a staring contest for a solid minute before both women broke into peals of laughter. “Alright, you. Go write that boy of yours a reply before he starts to think you actually believed his joke about being a vampire and got scared off.”

“He wouldn’t!” Isabel insisted, but that didn’t stop her from rolling out of the couch and heading for the bedroom. She closed the door behind her and dropped into the comfortable chair in front of her desk. On its surface sat all of Sebastian’s letters, which brought a smile to her face.

The rough paper felt familiar in her fingers, though the feeling seemed deeper than just the time she spent reading and rereading the letters.

It reminded her of the paper her professor had brought during a unit on Elizabethan literature, thick and creamy white.

Her thumb caressed Sebastian’s name and she felt her heart jump.

What was it about this man that drew her in so deeply?

She read all of his letters, feeling warm all over. When finished, she set them aside and pulled out her pen. The words came much easier these days; perhaps it was her growing familiarity with her Italian penpal, or maybe the way his eyes seemed soft as they stared at her from the sketch.

Either way, the words flowed from her pen until she reached the bottom of the page and pulled out another. Before starting again, Isabel shook out the cramp in her hand and rolled her head to loosen the stiffness which had taken up residence in her neck.

As her eyes passed lazily over her mirror, she stopped mid-roll and whipped back to the center of the glass.

A shiver rolled down her spine and she began to feel sick to her stomach.

It was gone now, but she was positive she had seen a double of herself.

The figure was dressed all in black, standing behind her with its hands resting on the back of her chair.

Isabel whipped around to scan her room, but found nothing.

“I guess I’ll finish tomorrow,” she whispered, her arms wrapping around herself as she began to shiver. A bead of cold sweat dripped down the back of her neck and a drop of blood trickled from her nose down her ivory skin to her lip. “Aw, crap…”

She stumbled from the chair to her bed, stuffed a tissue from the side table up her nose, and crawled under the blankets. She was suddenly burning up with fever and freezing at the same time. “Mel?” she called out, her voice tired.

The cry hadn’t been very loud, but Melody arrived moments later, bursting through the door.

“What’s up, Izzy? Need some help deciding what to say to your Italian hunk?

” She came to an abrupt halt when she saw Isabel shivering in the blankets up to her nose, with a tissue in her nostril slowly turning red.

“Izzy! What happened?!” Melody yelled, pulling her phone out of her pocket. “Is it the leukemia? Is it back?”

Isabel closed her eyes and shrugged. “I don’t know…all the sudden I just felt absolutely awful.”

“Can you get to the car to go to the hospital? If your cancer is flaring up, the sooner we get you there, the better. Or should I call an ambulance?” Melody punched 911 into the dial pad, but didn’t hit call quite yet.

Isabel thought for a moment. “The last thing I want is an ambulance bill eating up everything I’ve saved for Italy…grab my purse and I’ll head for the car.” She removed the blanket and stood, legs shaking under her slight weight.

Melody slung Isabel’s purse over her shoulder and returned to Isabel’s side. “Come on, chicka. I’ll help you.” With her friend’s strength holding her up, Isabel stumbled across the apartment and down to the car. “I don’t remember it being this bad last time, Izzy.”

“It wasn’t,” Isabel replied. Fear was beginning to claw its way down her throat and toward her stomach, intensifying the tremors that wracked her body. Had she been missing symptoms until they got this bad?

By the time the two women reached the car, Isabel slumped into the seat, exhausted.

“Don’t worry, Izzy. We’ll get you to the hospital and hopefully it’s just a nasty flu and regular nosebleed.

” Melody slammed the door behind Isabel, climbed into the driver’s seat, and peeled out of the parking lot as if Satan himself was on her tail.

* * *

Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. 5 October, 2006

T he incessant beeping of the monitoring equipment was the worst part. Isabel reached for the earbuds that her parents had dropped off earlier that morning and slid them into her ears. Soon the sound of 80’s rock covered the unwanted reminder of her current stint in invalid jail.

With her eyes closed and music loud, Isabel didn’t know the nurse had arrived until a soft touch to her arm startled her.

She pulled the earbuds out and frowned at the flustered nurse.

“I’m sorry, Miss Frantz. I didn’t mean to startle you.

You’re due for your next dose of pain medication, and the doctor should be by in a few minutes.

Is there anything else I can get for you? ”

Isabel shook her head and slumped back against the bed. “Do you know how much longer I’m going to have to stay?”

The nurse shook her head as well, an apologetic look on her face. “I’m so sorry, I don’t. But the doctor should have more answers when she gets here! I’ll be right back with your pain meds.”

Once the door had closed and Isabel was alone again, she looked at all of the flowers, cards, and balloons scattered around the room.

Tears welled up in her eyes. Despite knowing how likely it would be, Isabel had really hoped she would never have to see the inside of another Huntsman Cancer Institute room.

The nurse and the doctor arrived at the same time, though the nurse only stayed long enough to administer the medication. Once she was gone, Dr. Alvarez sat down next to Isabel with a soft smile. “How are you feeling today, Isabel?”

“Better than I was. Just pretty tired.” Isabel closed her eyes and fought back the tears that threatened to run down her cheeks again. “Did you come to give me bad news?”

Dr. Alvarez smiled and shook her head. “Not this time, thankfully. While you definitely had some sort of episode, your blood doesn’t show that it was caused by your leukemia.

So once you feel strong enough, you are free to go home.

Get lots of rest, and if you have any more symptoms, you know what to do, okay? ”

The relief which flooded Isabel’s body was warm and relaxed her muscles everywhere it touched. “Oh thank goodness! I was so sure you were going to tell me it had come back and I’d have to do another round of chemo. And I know how low the odds of survival are when it returns this soon.”

“I won’t tell you that you’re wrong about the odds, but you’re alright, my dear. Do you need us to call someone to help you get home?”

“I can do it,” Isabel replied, gesturing to her phone. “Thank you, Dr. Alvarez. You’ve definitely made my day.” Once the doctor was gone, she sent Melody a text and settled in for the best nap she’d had in days.