The Big C - Laura Linney

[zakandsara]

Hey guys, so I decided to write a fic based on the Shotime series 'The Big C' starring Laura Linney, Oliver Platt and Gabourey Sidibe. Basically, Laura Linney's character Cathy has cancer and is told she will die relatively soon, but she doesn't tell anyone in her family. The only person who knows is her elderly neighbor, Marlene. She is separated from her husband, Oliver Platt, and they have a 14 year old son. She works as a teacher and has a deal with one of her students, Andrea played by Gabourey Sidibe, that she will pay her for every pound she loses. Anything else, you can find here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1515193/ . Okay, so enjoy, and more is coming!

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"MOM! Hurry the FUCK up!!"

"DO NOT SAY THAT, ADAM! Jesus..." Cathy Jamison muttered to herself ater scolding her son, who was standing at the bottom of the stairs. "I'll be right down!" she finished. She walked over to her closet, pushing through the t-shirts and jeans to find a tight black top and a flowery skirt. She hated skirts, but her husband liked them and he'd probably be dressing her in one for the funeral, so she figured she may as well try it on for size. She got dressed, brushed her teeth, and grabber her purse, making her way toward the stairs. She fully expected to get shit from her son for taking her time, but she didn't care. Time was all she had left.

"Ready?" she asked Adams, who was sitting at the kitchen table, managing somehow to look both bored and anxious at the same time.

"Yeah, I have been for the past 20 minutes, just like every other morning," he bitched.

"Yeah, well you'll miss it when I'm gone and you have to depend on your father to drag his ass out of bed to get you to school. Let's go."

The ride, like every other day, was completely silent, besides the frequent chimes of Adam's cell phone that told him he had a new message. This morning, however, Cathy broke the peace.

"Who could possibly be texting you at 7:30 in the morning?"

Adam just looked at her as if she were a complete idiot. "Jake."

"Oh! How is he doing?" she responded, shocked that he had even acknowledged her.

"I don't know?" he spat.

"Well, I thought you were talking to him. Obviously, that was my mistake," she added, sarcastically.

"You know what, mom? Can you just not-"

"Hah'ESCHHHOO!" Cathy, unintentionally cutting him off, sneezed as efficiently as she could while still keeping her eyes on the road. "EE'ASCHHHHOO!!"

"Gross, mom! Jesus!"

"I'm sorry, Adam, what the hell did you want me to do!?" she asked him, in disbelief.

"I want you to stop. Just....stop," he responded, in a huff, and went back to ignoring her completely.

Cathy shook her head, trying to think when her little boy went from climbing into her bed in the middle of the night to routinely ostricizing her in a community of two. She thought how much it would tear her son apart to find out that she was sick and that shw would only be around for a very short time and how guilty he would feel when that time came and-

"Okay, slow down! God, we're almost there." He brought her straight back to reality, which was in front of Adam's high school. The moment she stopped the car, his fingers were on the handle and his foot was out the door. He was ready to not have to deal with his mother again for a full 8 hours, when his best friend Jake approached the car.

"Hey man," Jake said, highfiving Adam. "What up, Mrs. J?" He exclaimedm turning to Cathy in the driver's seat. "Long time, no see."

"Yeah, it's been a while. So how are you, Jake?" she responded, fully enjoying the embarrassment her son was getting from it.

"Pretty cool. My mom told me to tell you-"

"Ah'HEEIISHHU!" Cathy, turning into the crook of her elbow, sneezed again.

"Mom! Chill!" an embarrassed Adam blurted.

"Bless you, Mrs. J. Are you sick?"

"Thanks Jake," she grinned at her son, who was looking horrified as ever, "but I've dealt with much worse."

"Cool. Gotta go. See you, Mrs. J."

"Bye, boys. Have a good day," she retorted, trying on her new Mrs. Brady-esque edge. She was ready to pull away when she noticed someone walking toward the back of the car.

"Hey, gas-whore. How's the convertible? Nice and cozy enough for your spoiled ass to sit in?"

"Shut the fuck up, Sean," she said as her hippy brother climbed into the passenger seat. "What are you doing here?"

"I was on my way to the Walmart around the corner. Today's the day the new shipments come in, which means the dumpster is overflowing with a wealth of wonderful things that someone like myself might find useful."

"So, it's trash day?"

"Yeah, will you give me a ride over there?"

"Why not, it's on my way. So, how's the homeless business treating you? Find any good patches of dirt to report ohhh-HA'ETSHHHIEOO, on?" she joked.

"No, I haven't because I have, in fact, been sleeping in a quaint little barn for the past three nights. How's your processed, polymar life?" he spat back.

"Could be batter. HE'TISHHAAH!! Damn it..." she mumbled.

"You see sis, your perfect little house with your perfect little air conditioning system is making your perfect little body feel like shit. I don't have to worry about that."

"Yes, but you have to worry about hobos attacking you in the park while you nap. Besides, I don't feel like shit, Sean. I don't get sick, you know that. It's probably just the filth you dragged in here..."

"Whatever, Cath. I'm just saying, when you wind up in a hospital with 3 weeks to live, don't blame it on anything but your environment."

"Jesus! Can we not talk about this? It's not even 8 o'clock and you're already heckling my life. Lay off, man - hahh'ITSCHHHOO!"

"I'd offer you a tissue, but I haven't got a home," he replied, knowing it would piss her off.

"Get out," she pulled to the curb.

"Thanks for the ride, sis," he said, jumping out of the car, "and don't forget to pump your body full of harmless and synthetic toxins for that cold you've got!"

"It's not a fucking cold!" she yelled out the window, driving away. "HAR'TEESHHOOO!"

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After ten minutes, Cathy pulled up to the school where she worked as a teacher for teens who were....troubled. It's not that they were extraordinarily bad kids, but they routinely pissed Cathy off, and that was enough for her to dread work almost every day. She waltzed into her classroom, where several of her students were already settled in, and unpacked her things. Her laptop, a magazine, a water bottle; they should entertain her for the day while she put the kids to work on some mindless assignment that would be almost impossible to fuck up. That was the thing- her job may have been frustrating, but it was easy as hell. She sat down at her desk and opened her laptop to check her email, but suddenly she felt another tickle in her nose. She swiveled her chair around so that her back was to the class and bent into cupped hands: "HAI'ESHCHHHH-oo! Heh'TISHHHHOOO!"

As she rubbed at her nose and turned back around to her computer, she heard a chipper "Bless you!" from one of the desks. She looked up at Kristen, a particularly preppy girl, and gave her a tiny smile and a nod of the head. Minutes passed and most of the students in the class were now in their desks and chattering, like always, when Cathy, again, had to turn to bury her nose into her left arm. "ESCHHHIIEWW! Shit," she mumbled, shaking her head.

"Bless you, Mrs. Jamison," she heard once more. Cathy, not much caring anymore, gave her the obligatory 'thank you' hand wave and closed her laptop to prepare for class.

"Okay guys, today we're watching 'A Few Good Men' and then....I don't know, write a few paragraphs about it and I'll give you an A."

"Uh, Mrs. Jamison?" A voice from the back of the room chimed in.

"Yeah, what?"

"We did that last week," he stated matter-of-factly.

"Okay, then you won't have to do much work, will you?" she answered. "Just be reletively quiet, my sinuses may implode if I have to sit here and tell you to shut up all dahh..day. Hahh'TEIISCHHHHO! TSCHIEWW'ESCHHHHOO!"

"Bless you, Mrs. J!" Kristen blurted, once again.

"Okay, Kristen. We get it, you're polite. But unless I'm grading you on overall niceties, which I'm not, by the way, I'd suggest you focus your attention on the assignment and not my...situation," Cathy snapped and sat down at her desk, rubbing her temples.

Andr3asays: Nice goin, miss j

Cathy looked at the message on her computer, noticing the screenname was Andrea's, a student of hers. She looked up from the screen and searched the dark classroom for the girl.

CathyJ66: Andrea?

Andr3asays: behind kristen

Cathy looked up again and saw her in the very last row; she was waving with a grin. In any other circumstance, she would've scolded her for using a phone during her class, but lately, she didn't really give a shit.

Andr3asays: i mean way to freak out.

CathyJ66: Was I being a bitch?

Andr3asays: hell no. she was being annoying as fuck

CathyJ66: Thank you for saying that.

Andr3asays: i got you miss j

"HAHT'EISHHHHOO, HIHH'TSHCHOOOO!" Cathy, one hand still over her nose, pulled open a drawer in her desk and searched for a box of Kleenex.

Andr3asays: gezoontite

CathyJ66: Tissues?

After a minute, Andrea slowly got out of her desk and walked up to Cathy's desk. She leaned in and dropped the tissues into her free hand with a wink.

"Thadnk you," Cathy whispered, wiping her runny nose.

Andr3asays: u sick?

CathyJ66: No. I never get sick.

Andr3asays: u sound hella sick miss j

CathyJ66: Allergies.

Andr3asays: u dont have allergies

CathyJ66: I don't know then. But I'm not sick.

Andr3asays: whatever miss j. whens the next weigh in

CathyJ66: Hold on

She managed to type out a response before erupting again, only this time into a tissue. "HE'AIISHHHHIEW! HAHT'NGXX-TSCHOOO!"

Andr3asays: dont hold in a sneez your brain will explode

CathyJ66: Thank you for the advice. Weigh-in tonight...if my brain is still in tact.

Andr3asays: k see u then

CathyJ66: See you at 8.

Cathy turned away from her desk, ready to shut her computer down, when she had a thought.

CathyJ66: Andrea?

Andr3asays: Yea

CathyJ66: Tonight...bring tissues.

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I will write more if you guys respond/want it! Let me know what you're thinking, please!

[Nicole]

Great story! Thanks for sharing. Cute.

[alpha_dog]

I've never seen the show, but I love your story <3 Please continue!!!!

[SneezeDoc4u]

Keep going

[alpha_dog]

I seriously can't stop reading this!!! !

[zakandsara]

I seriously can't stop reading this!!! !

Thank you! I'll get to work on a next part soon. I wonder if she'll give in and admit she has a cold....

[Alexandria]

watch the tv show and really want to see what else you write for this story!I wann know if she does give in.....

[Balmora]

Gotta say, that was extraordinarily well-written. Very realistic, very snappy. Great characterisation too, especially the hippie. More please, kthanx.

[zakandsara]

Part 2 

The day went on as it usually did; Cathy checked her email or painted her nails or paged through this month's Cosmo while her students did mediocre work and made whiny remarks. The bell rang and she packed her things into her purse as the kids noisily filed out. She grabbed her keys and her computer off the desk and was ready to go, when Lenny, a school custodian, (and coincidentally the man she had been having an affair with) appeared in the doorway.  

"We haven't spoken in days," he remarked quietly, rubbing her arm. He always had a way of getting to her and she hated it. 

"I've had...I've been busy." She stumbled, her eyes closing as his hands moved further down. 

"Well, I miss you. I was hoping I could see just a little bit more of you..." he trailed off, pulling her shirt up over her head and kissing her. 

"Lenny-"

"No." It was as simple as that. He wasn't going to let her go anywhere. And for once in her life, she actually listened. 

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The two of them laid together, his arm around her, underneath her desk. There was something so sexy, yet so filthy, about what they were doing. Either way, they were hooked. 

"Mmm...you smell wonderful," Lenny whispered into her ear, brushing her hair out of her face. 

Cathy smiled at him and gave him a quick kiss on the lips, quickly returning her head to the spot right between his chest and his arm.

"I mean it. I love laying here with you and just breathing you in. It's so...what's the word?" He looked at her for vaildation, only to see her concentration elsewhere.   

She freed her hand from under his strong arm and rubbed purposefully at her nose. 

"You alright?" he asked her, sounded honest. 

"Uh-huh.." Cathy answered bluntly, as to not call attention to her quickening breath, but it was no use. She gave a small gasp and turned away from him, bringing her wrist up to her nose.  

"Heh'nGNNT-SHooo!" She turned back with a halfhearted smile, leaning back against him. 

"Bless you." he stated, matter-of-factly.  

"Thanks," she mumbled, her head buried in his strong chest. 

"You shouldn't do that you know," he blurted after a moment. 

She lifted her head and look at him, confused. "Do...what?"

"Stifle your sneezes. They're happening for a reason."

"Yeah, to piss me off..."

"Pardon?" he sat up, too. 

"Nothing. You know, you're the second person to tell me that today."

"Interesting." He said, eyeing her suspiciously.

"I should get going. I have to pick Adam up from soccer," she rushed, awkwardly breaking their gaze. She picked herself off the floor and threw her shirt on, ready to leave when she heard the door behind her. 

"Shit!" she quickly remarked, pushing a stumbling Lenny back under the desk. "Andrea! What are you still doing here?" she asked the girl, a little too enthusiastically. 

"Um, I forgot my jacket. Why you being weird, Miss J?"

"What? What do you mean, I'm not!" She bumbled, kicking a sock (presumably Lenny's) under her desk. 

"Okay...why the hell are you still here? Shouldn't you be with your scrawny ass son or something?" 

"No. I mean yes! Yes, I'm on my way to get his scrawny ass now. I was just...grading papers. And then I was going to leave, and then you got here. And now I'm really leaving." 

Andrea stared at her. "You crazy, Miss J."

"Yeah, well. We all have our shit. Do you need a ride home?" 

"Naw, I can walk it. I gotta get ready for the weigh in tonight," she answered with a smug smile. 

"Alright then, I'll see you in a few hours," Cathy responded. She turned to leave and almost reached the door when she stopped for what felt like the hundredth time that day. "Heht'TSCHIEOOO!" 

"Shit, girl. You still doing that?" a shocked Andrea asked. 

"Apparently." She snapped back, and walked out the door to her car.

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"ADAM!" Cathy yelled out the car window. "COME ON! Get the hell in here..." she muttered, knowing he couldn't hear her.

"Jesus, I'm coming! Chill, mom," Adam, still in his mood, shot back at her as he walked toward the car. He got in without saying a word and slammed the door, throwing his bags in the backseat. 

"I wish you would stop telling me to chill." Cathy remarked, almost as though thinking out loud. 

"Well I wish you would stop freaking out at me," he spat.

Cathy sighed. Lately, all they did was fight and she knew nothing she said could possibly make him stop acting like the 14 year old that he was. 

"So...how was your day?" she offered. 

"Fine," he answered, staring out the window. 

"Good," Cathy retorted after a moment. "Hah'EEESHIOOO!" Cathy sniffed and rubbed her running nose, turning onto the street where they lived.  

"Bless you," Adam said mechanically. 

"Wh-thanks," Cathy stuttered, so shocked that he had acknowledged her that she almost slammed on the brakes. She pulled into the driveway a moment later and just as she was about to put the car in park, she felt a tickle again. "Hah'ESHHMMMPH! Hih'TSCHHHHI!" she sneezed, turning away from Adam, into her left shoulder, making sure to keep her hands on the wheel. 

"Bless you, mom," Adam said again, only this time, more enthusiastically. Cathy, knowing her son to be everything but genuine, parked the car and turned to look him in the eye. 

"What are you doing?" she asked him, with suspicion. 

"What do you mean? I'm being nice, God!" Adam shouted back. 

"Yeah, I might believe you if you hadn't spent the last three days ignoring me completely. What do you want?"

"I want to go to Brent's tonight. He's having people over to play video games and I have NOTHING to do. It's so boring here," he explained. 

"I knew it," Cathy said with a smile. "Alright, I'll tell you what. You can go tonight only if you promise to keep up this nice guy act for more than 22 seconds next time." 

"Ah, thank you! You are...the best. I mean it, mom," he rambled, leaning in to hug her. 

"Ah, ah, ah," she stopped him. "I appreciate the sentiment, but I don't want you to catch- I mean I don't want you getting.....raincheck on the hug for whenever this shit stops," she said, reffering to her quickening breaths and turned away once more, "HAH'TSSSCHIEWW!!" She sneezed, accidentally bumping the horn in the midst, resulting in a startled yelp from in front of the vehicle. Cathy hopped out of the car to find her husband, Paul, standing in the garage. 

"Jesus! You scared me!" he panted. 

"I'm sorry, but what the hell were you doing hiding in my garage!?" she shouted. She was getting sick of him coming over daily to try and convince her to 'repair their love'.

"It's my garage too, you know. And by the way, you should really be more careful when you're pulling in. You almost rammed into the side of OUR house." 

"I did not, Paul, stop being so dramatic," Cathy scolded. 

"You did so and I am not being dramatic! My therapist says you're always trying to define how I'm feeling."

"God, Paul! I'm so sick of hearing about your fucking therapist. She doesn't know anything about our marriage - or anything about me for that matter! She's brainwashing you, that's what they do, Paul. And then they take your money."

"You're wrong. You don't know anything about how -" 

"HAHN'TESHHHOO!!"

"Gesundheit," Paul said bluntly, taking a hankerchief out of his pocket and offering it to Cathy. She looked at it and shook her head, slightly disgusted. 

"Thanks anyway," she said as she walked away and into the house.

"Wh-so that's it?!" he yelled to her as she left. 

"Yeah, Paul. That's it," she answered him just before she went inside.

"No, no, no! I don't come all the way down here and you honk at me and say that's it! We need to talk, Cathy, or we'll never figure this out!" he yelled to her. 

"There is nothing to figure out, Paul, go home!!" she shouted out the kitchen window. 

He moved closer to the house, standing right below where she was sitting at the kitchen table inside. "This is my God damn home, in case you've forgotten. And I will not stop coming here until you agree to have a civilized conversation with me, for Christ's sake!" he told her sternly. "Cathy!" he called up after a few seconds; she had not acknowledged him. "Cathy?! Come on..." he tried again, getting angry. He had had enough and turned in a huff to leave when she broke the silence. 

"HAH'nngXXTSCHHHHOO! DAMN it." He heard Cathy yell from inside. 

"Gesundheit!" he shouted angrily at her before walking back to his car.

"Thanks, Paul," she answered, somewhat sweetly, despite her usual demeanor. He stopped when he heard this and contemplated going back, but turned back to his car and drove away.

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"Marlene!!" Cathy called from the front porch of her neighbor. "C'mon, let me in, I have your mail!" She tapped on the window, knowing the woman was most likely just sitting inside ignoring her. She waited about a minute more before deciding it just wasn't worth it and turned to go back across the street. 

"Hey! Where do you think you're going with my mail?" Marlene called to her when she was halfway down her driveway. 

"Wha- why wouldn't you let me in, Marlene?" Cathy asked with a sigh. She was already feeling unusually exhausted and didn't think she could take any more shit from anyone that day. 

"Wanted to see what you would do. Looks like you failed, ya thief," the woman replied, snarkily. 

"Oh, come on, you know I would've brought it back to you! Besides, I don't have time to wait, I have a meeting in an hour."

"I don't need excuses. I just need my mail." 

Cathy rolled her eyes and walked back to the porch, ready to hand the woman her mail when she stopped short. 

"What are you doing?" Marlene barked. 

"I'm gonna sne-Hahh'TSCHHHHiew! Sorry. Here." She said, handing the envelopes over. 

"God bless," Marlene replied, snatching the mail from Cathy's hand. 

"Thank you," she answered politely, with a smile. Even though she took a lot of shit from the old woman, Cathy knew that she and Marlene had indeed gotten closer over the weeks; she might even go so far as to call them friends. "Alright, I'm gonna head back. Good night, Marl-HAHT'nggxOOO!" she sneezed, one finger under her nose trying desperately to fight off yet another. "Hiih'TSchhhhEW, damb it," Cathy muttered, nose blocked. 

"G'bless you. What the hell, come inside and I'll give you some tea. That outta clear you right up."

"Fidne. But ondly for a few bindutes. I have somewhere to be soodn," she tried her very hardest to sound like herself, but Marlene saw through it. After all, she had managed to find out about the cancer - how hard was it to see past a common cold?

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Alright, there's part two for ya! You like? Let me know and I'll get working on some more!!              

[alpha_dog]

This story is just completely, utterly amazing. PLEASE WRITE MORE!!!! <3 <3 <3 :yuck:

This seriously blows my mind

[Nicole]

This is great! Makes me want to watch the show. Love it!

[Alexandria]

Thanks for adding another part! Can't wait to see what else you add to this story!

[zakandsara]

Part 3

"Honey?"

"Pardon?!" Cathy did a double-take, never in a million years expecting Marlene to use a term of endearment. 

"You want honey? In your tea?" she explained. 

"Oh! Oh, no thank you," she declined, taking a seat in Marlene's living room chair. 

"Ya sure? It's good for your throat," she pressed. 

"I'm fine, Marlene. My throat is fine and I'm fine. But thank you," Cathy bluntly said.

"You know, I don't get it. People want to help you and ya won't let em, yet you'd be bitching even more if no one cared!" 

Cathy gave her a look that if given to her son or her husband would've sent them running. On Marlene, however, it was unphasing. "It's not that I won't let them, Marlene. It's just that I don't like people making a big deal about me. Because it's not. A big deal, I mean. At worst, it's just a cold," she rambled. 

"Cathy, ya know that's not what I'm talking about. You need to tell Paul, he'll find out sooner or later. And I ain't gonna be the one explaining it to him at your funeral." 

Cathy chuckled, but gave an understanding nod. "I know I do. And I will soon. I just....I just have to do it on my own time."

"Of course ya do, you love control." 

"Excuse me? I do not love control! I just have to be the one in charge or else my life, not to mention my son's and my husband's, will fall apart! I mean, come on, Marlene. You really think I like being in charge of ehh. Of everehhh-" she trailed off as she felt a sneeze building. She held her index finger under her nose and closed her eyes, trying to keep from another annoying outburst. Her breath hitched, but she clamped her finger and thumb hard around her nose, stopping the sneeze entirely in its tracks. "Excuse me," Cathy finished, knowing Marlene was staring her down. 

"Are you fuckin kidding me? Ya won't even let yourself sneeze, for Christ's sake! You have to let go every once in a while, Cathy. Otherwise you will fall apart! Trust me. Happened to my husband. He kept strong and together and stoic until he couldn't take it anymore and....and he went off. Had a breakdown that put him right in the hospital. That's what they called the beginning of the end."

Cathy looked at the woman, who though usually tough and cold, had such pain beneath. "I'm....I'm so sorry, Marlene. And I know you're trying to help me, but you need to let me figure it out on my own." 

"I just don't want you to figure it out too late. Stop controlling your life and start living it."

Cathy smiled at her as she took a seat beside her, handing her a teacup. "Thank you. I really appreciate this, but I can't stay very long. I have a student coming over la- haht'TSchhmmphiiew! Scuse me, later." She used her napkin to dab at her irritated nose. 

"God bless." 

"Thank y-"

"When'd you get that cold, anyway?" Marlene cut her off. 

"Well, I don't know. I'm still trying to...define it. See, if I'm sick, then I have to call out of school and use my sick days, which God knows I'll need soon enough. My homeless brother will then come over and yell at me through my window about how much of the Earth I'm destryoing by popping a couple Dayquil. And I'll have to ask Paul to deal with Adam, which would then be an invitation for him to come back and whine to me, perhaps resulting in him crying in my living room again. It's all very complicated and long story short, I don't get fucking sick." 

"Well, damn. No wonder you come over here. I'm the least shitty person you know!"

"Yeah...and that's not saying very much," she mumbled.

"Pardon?" Marlene tested her. 

"Nothing, nothing. Alright, I have to get going, I can't be late. But thank you for the tea, Marlene. I appreciate it, really," Cathy finished with a smile, getting up and going to the door. 

"Well, you're welcome. And hey!" she yelled before Cathy could close the door. "Take care of your cold."

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As Cathy walked back across her lawn, she got to thinking, and after all she had been through, she still found being along with her thoughts the most terrifying. She thought of her husband and what he would do without her. How would he take care of the house? How would he ever manage to continue a normal life alone? How would he take care of Adam? And then she thought of Adam. Poor Adam, who would have to grow up never having the privilegde of calling his mother for advice, or even to pick on her. She knew he would take it the hardest, yet she didn't know just how (or when) she was going to let him. Her mind wandering, she almost didn't see that Andrea was sitting on her porch waiting. 

"It's about damn time, Miss J. What was you doing, you're the one who set this shit up!" she complained. 

"I know, I'm sorry, I got side-tracked at my neighbor's house. But, I'm here now and I'm ready!"

"Well I'm not," Andrea said bluntly. "I just came to tell you I can't stay. I have a fuckin' math exam tomorrow and I gotta get my shit together. My damn tutor cancelled at the last minute, so I'm screwed. Anyway...I'll see you on Monday, Miss J."

Before the girl was too far gone, Cathy had an idea. "Andrea!" she called to her. "I could...let me tutor you."

"Uhh, you do English, Miss J. Ain't that some sort of left brain/right brain type shit? You can't do math if you can do English and I ain't about to fail this class again."

"No, no, I'm actually quite good at math. Let me help you, I'd really like to."

"Well, shit. If you really gonna help me, we gotta get moving. I need to learn 10 chapters worth of shit by tomorrow morning." And with that, the girl walked into Cathy's house and sat at the table. 

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"Alright, what are we learning?" Cathy asked as she walked to the cabinet for glasses. "Addition, subtraction...whadda you got to stump my 'English' brain?" 

"Algebra. And this shit is LAME, Miss J. Ain't nobody gonna sit here and tell me I have to start doing math with the alphabet," she whined. 

Cathy walked back to the table and set down two glasses of water. "It's not that bad, trust me. Let's see it."

As Andrea reached down into her bag and started rummaging, Cathy stood suddenly. She walked to the edge of the kitchen sink and ripped the roll of paper towels out of its spindel. She returned to the table, Andrea still sorting through piles of papers, and ripped off a couple. "Haah'MMPPSHIOO! Hiiih'TSCHHHMMPH!"

Andrea turned to her teacher and gave her a glare. 

"Sorry," Cathy said with a shrug, face still buried in a paper towel. She blew her nose and threw the towel into the garbage can behind her. 

"Found the little fucker!" Andrea exclaimed, finally pulling a wrinkled sheet of paper onto the wooden surface. "I gotta be able to know how to do all of these or else Ima fail the final."

"Alright, well it shouldn't be that hard. Look," Cathy said pointing to the first row of problems. "You already have these done! Aaand...they look right to me."

"But those are the pussy problems they start out with, Miss J. They only get harder."

"Okay, well you seem like you've mastered the basics, so let's move onto the more advanced level of...AH'eetchhhshoo!" She turned away, quickly, with the back of her right hand covering her mouth.  

"Bless you," Andrea responded before she turned back.  

"Thank you, Andrea," Cathy smiled. "Okay, now do you understand how to do part A of this problem?" Cathy said, circling the problem with a pencil. 

"Uhh, yeah, I think so," Andrea replied, unsure. 

"Okay, so you just apply those same rules to part B, only you have to flip the fraction and divide."

"Miss J, I have no idea what the fuck you talking about," she said bluntly.

"Yeah....I'm not so sure that I do either. It turns out I'm not so good at algebra!" Cathy said with a laugh. She could see that Andrea didn't find this so funny. "I'm sorry! Is there anything else I can help you do? Anything...that I would actually know?"

"Not unless you wanna write me a college essay," Andrea responded, only half joking. 

"Oh, you're applying to colleges! That's so exciting! Where are you thinking of going?" 

"I don't fuckin know! Anywhere that will take me, I guess. I don't have good grades and I don't do the whole 'school activities' bullshit, so there's a pretty big chance that my ass is staying here. Besides-"

"HAH'ngxxtCHH! Excuse-HINN'xxtschho! 'NXXGTSCHiew, excuse be!" Cathy apologized. She grabbed another paper towel and turned away from Andrea, blowing her nose. "Sorry, go 'head."

"Hell, I forget what I was even sayin. Are you gonn die on me, Miss J?"

Cathy giggled. "No, I think I'll make it. It's just a cold."

"Well, I never seen you with a cold before. I never even seen you sneeze before today, girl!"

"Oh, sure you have, don't be silly. I had to have been sick at one point or another. And I've had you in class for two years, I'm sure I've sneezed at least once," Cathy said, thinking back. 

"Girl, I would've remember that loud-ass noise. Scared the shit outta me this morning."

"I'm sorry," Cathy laughed. "I can't really help it."

"Girl, you betta help it, gonna give me a fuckin heart attack one day!" 

"Well, I'll send you a warning from now on. Hopefully this cold will be gone by Monday, so we won't even have to worry about that," Cathy smiled. 

"I don't think so, Miss J. You seem kinda sick, you all pale and shit. Even for a white girl. You should check out a doctor before you get your dumb ass kid sick too."

"The doctor...yeah, that's actually a good idea. Thanks, Andrea." Cathy got up from the table, determinedly walking toward her study. Andrea, confused, stared at her for a minute before deciding it wasn't worth waiting for and started packing her things. She stood up and moved to the door, when from the other room came a semifamiliar startling noise.

"HAH-ISHHHOOO! HAHT'ESCHHHHIEW!!"

Andrea let out a small yelp and turned back, yelling to the study. "WHERE THE HELL WAS MY WARNING?"

Cathy rushed back to the room, with a guilty smile. "Sorry! Couldn't get it out in time. You leaving?"

"Yeah, I'm leaving, crazy. I'll see you Monday." She turned to leave, grabbing the doorknob, but was stopped by a tap on her shoulder. She turned back to her teacher.   

"I'm- HAHTSCHEEOO...going to sneeze."

"Bless you, Miss J. See you round," Andrea left walked out the door, chuckling. 

Cathy watched her go, smiling, and went to turn back to her study, only to find her son standing right behind her. 

"Jesus!! You scared me, Adam! When did you even get here?!" she said, out of breath. 

"Relax, mom, I just got back. And what the hell was she doing here?" he said with a cocky tone. 

"I was helping her with homework. I was tutoring her. Is that alright with you?" she asked sarcastically. 

"Yeah, whatever. So what time is dinner?"

"I actually haven't thought about it yet. What do you want? I think I still have some chicken left from-"

"Huh-TCHOO."

"Bless you," Cathy replied.  

"Chicken's cool. Hurry up though, I'm STARVING." 

"Well, alright then. I'll start in a few minutes. What do you-"

"Huh-ACHHO! TSCCHHOOW!" he overexagerrated, as teenage boys tend to do. 

"Bless you. Adam, do you feel sick?"

"No, mom. Jesus."

"Are you sure? Because I think you may have caught my cold. And if you have it, your father will most likely get it too. And you know how your father turns into a baby when he's not feeling well."

"God, mom! Stop trash talking dad! No, I'm not sick. Just cuz I sneeze like ONCE doesn't mean I have the plague. You're crazy."

"First of all, I am not trash talking your father. I'm telling the truth. And I just want to make sure you're alright, Adam, it's my job for God's sake."

"Well I'm fine. Just because you're sick doesn't mean everyone is. And it's not the end of the world, mom. We get it. You're sick. Get over it."

"Take that back, Adam," Cathy suddenly felt like he'd punched her in the stomach. 

"No! You think I care that you're sick? I don't care. I'm not gonna sit here and take care of you or some shit."

"WATCH YOUR MOUTH," she was angry now and she could feel tears stinging the backs of her eyes. "You do care about me, Adam, I know you do. And if you don't now, you will. And you'll feel pretty FUCKING terrible when there's nothing you can do to help me."

"Mom, what the hell is your problem?! CALM DOWN, you have a cold!! Jesus..."

Cathy felt herself growing more and more upset and more and more angry. She knew it was coming, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. It wasn't the right place or the right time, and it certainly wouldn't make things better, but she couldn't hold it back any longer.  "Adam, I have cancer."

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[alpha_dog]

OH MY GOD THAT WAS AWESOME!!!!!!!!! I love you for writing this!!!!! <3

[Alexandria]

OH MY FREAKING GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Unfreaking believable please please please plase please please write more!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!111

[NoV]

Wow - I am loving this story. Great flow and pacing - and above all some truly spectacular sneezing! I look forwards to reading more...

[zakandsara]

That night was one of the worst she could remember. On top of her gradually worsening stamina and tolerance, she had to deal with her son, who was fully convinced that she had made the whole 'cancer thing' up. They fought for hours and only got as far as agreeing to give each other space for a few days, which was no chore for either of them, as they had been together in the house since Paul had moved out weeks ago. The night concluded in Adam flipping his mother the bird and stomping up to his room. Under any other circumstances, Cathy might've followed him up there and tore him apart, but she knew she kind of deserved it. Yes, she had been telling the truth about her cancer, but it was absolutely an inappropriate time and place, and Adam deserved better. She sat down at the table, rubbing her head. She had no idea what she could do to make things right and might have sat all night worried if the doorbell hadn't suddenly rung. 

She stood up, a tad confused as to who would be at her door at ten o' clock on a Thursday. As she got closer, the pounding started again, and she immediately knew who it was. She opened the door and reluctantly let him in. 

"Cathy," he said as he stepped in the door. "I know I freaked out a little today, but I don't wanna be that kind of guy. I love you and I will do anything it takes to move back in with you. And before you say anything, I brought you a care package. Adam told me you were sick."

"He told you?!" Cathy's heart was racing. "Wha-when?"

Paul looked at her, confused. "This afternoon. It's a little obvious, Cathy, you've looked awful for a couple days now, no offense. Besides, it's just a cold, I can help you get better."

Cathy breathed a sigh of relief. "Like you said, Paul, it's just a cold. I'll be fine."

"Cathy, please. You don't understand what it's like to not be with you anymore. You're a catch and I'm just a lumpy doofus who was lucky enough to find you. I want to be here for you so you know how much you mean to me. I love you, Cathy and I'm a mess. Sitting over at my fucking sister's house, watching her play solitare online every night...makes me want to kill myself."

"Paul, I understand where you're coming from and we do need to work things out eventually, but now isn't the best time. I need my space right now. And besides, I'm sick, I won't be much fun. Or much to look at."

Paul snorted a chuckle. "You don't get it. I came here to help you get better. I don't care if you're not fun. And trust me, you're plenty to look at even when you're sick. You're all pale and innocent looking, and you don't have enough energy to yell at me. Plus you do that cute little thing right before you sneeze, and that gets me every time."

"What thing do I do, Paul?" Cathy asked, intrigued. 

"You know...that thing where you scrunch up your nose and then your eyes water and start to sparkle, just like on our wedding day. Remember your sparkling eyes? The photographer said he'd never seen eyes like that before."

"Yeah I....I guess I do remember that." Cathy looked at him. He looked so desperate, so loving, like an orphaned puppy. "Alright, you can stay. But if you get sick too, that's not my fau..HIT'tschhIEWW! Uhhg." She rubbed away at her watering eyes. 

"God bless you, Cathy." Paul grinned and walked past Cathy back into his house.

------------------------------------------------

"Cathy? Cathy Jamison?"

Her head shot up, as she had been waiting almost 30 minutes for her name to be called.

"That's me," she replied, standing up and walking toward the glass window. 

The young receptionist smiled in the way they tend to do and spoke often in cliches: "The doctor will see you now," she finished. 

Cathy waltzed back into the exam room. She had been coming here so often over the past few weeks that she was quite used to it. She closed the door firmly and slipped out of her clothes and into the stylish paper gown she hated so much. She grabbed a People magazine and hopped up onto the table, waiting patiently for Dr. Todd. Soon enough, his knock at the door gave Cathy a tiny shock and she dropped the magazine back onto the table. 

"Hey, Cathy. Wow, two appointments in a row actually inside the office! I'm impressed with you," he said sarcastically, referring to her tendency to demand meetings in ridiculous places, like seafood restaurants. 

"Yeah, I know! I guess I'm growing up." She grinned at him, cheesily. 

"Now, you didn't actually have an appointment scheduled for today. So what brings you here?"

"What, you're not happy to see me? I thought I was your favorite. Or is that just what you tell all the girls?" she teased him.

"Ha," he said sarcastically. "But seriously, what are you doing here?"

Cathy hesitated, as she wasn't exactly sure of her own reasoning for the meeting. She only knew she needed to see Dr. Todd before she started to feel any worse. 

"Actually, it's not a big deal. I just haven't been feeling very well lately," she explained.

"Alright, what are your symptoms? Are you finding any more skin abnormalities or experiencing pain?" He always had a slight edge to his voice when he was dealing with Cathy; there was just something about her that drew her to him, unlike any other patient he'd ever had. 

"No, not at all. It's just...I've had headaches and fatigue and slight congestion. For a few days now."

Todd wrinkled his forehead, a tad confused. "So this has nothing to do with an emergency skin cyst, like you said when you called?" 

"Not exactly," Cathy looked at him guiltily. "But I really haven't been feeling a hundred percent so I thought I'd better come see you. Better safe thahh...thaaa-" Cathy cut off, fighting to keep from sneezing. Her hands were positioned in front on her face, prepared, as her breath hitched ever so slightly. "Hih'EEESHHHoo!! HAAAtchshhooo!" 

"Bless you, Cathy," Dr. Todd was smiling. "Looks like you just have a cold. What are you really doing here? I'm an oncologist, you know that...clearly."

Cathy looked at him, defeated. She didn't know what to say because she didn't really know the answer herself. She sat for a few seconds in silence before she was ready. 

"I...I just don't know where else to go. I'm soo tired and so sick of this. My husband is having some sort of emotional breakdown and my son fucking hates me. I just....I have nowhere else." She wiped a few tears from her cheek. She was exhausted and overwhelmed and with Dr. Todd, she felt truly comfortable. 

"Cathy," he started, sounding sympathetic as he walked toward her. "I know you have a lot on your plate right now, but you need to learn to just relax. You'll never feel better if you keep holding all this inside of you. You need support right now. From someone other than just me," he said with a laugh. 

Cathy nodded and turned to him, gratefully. She held his gaze for a few seconds before he suddenly dropped his chart to the ground and moved closer. He pulled her in, passionately for such a sweet man, and kissed her. Hard. She let him for just a moment before she realized what was going on. 

"Todd!! What are you doing, we can't do this!" she exclaimed, jumping off the exam table where he was still sitting. 

"Why not? Huh? I understand you, Cathy! You know I do, you can't deny it."

"Well, sure. But you're so young, Todd. And I'm dying. You know that better than anyone else. Plus, I have a husband and you have a...Julie. This can't happen again. Okay?"

He nodded, jumping off the table as well. He bent to pick up his chart and when he stood, noticed Cathy struggling once again. 

Her mouth was slightly ajar and her eyes were on their way to closing, watering again, though this time not of sadness. She had her elbow ready, but each time she'd prepare to bury her nose, she'd seem to lose the sneeze, just to get it back when she brought her head up again. 

"Huhhh...shit!" she managed to blurt out in the midst of the tug of war. 

Todd, having watched this for several seconds, realized that he had just been staring, and quickly stepped to the door and flipped the light on. 

"Look up," he ordered. 

Cathy, against her better judgement, pulled her head away from her arm and squinted at the fluorescent lights above. Almost instantly, she brought her arm back up to meet her face. 

"HaiiESCHHHHIEWW! EEESHHHHIOO'TSCHHIEW! Ughhh," she moaned as she sat in a chair in the corner of the office, rubbing at her eyes. "Thadnks for the tip," she sniffled miserably. 

"Of course," he answered, handing her a box of tissues. "Bless you, by the way. That was...quite the show." 

"Shut up. People always tell be that. I cadnt chadnge it though...believe be, I've tried." She blew her nose, quite loudly, and cleared herself up. "You're probably going to catch this now. You know that, right? Perhaps kissing me wasn't the best choice on your part."

"You know, I thought about that," he smirked, "but then I realized I didn't really care." He smiled at her and she actually found herself starting to blush. 

"Ohh...if I hadn't just scolded you, I might kiss you myself. Don't you have other places to be? Like you said, I didn't even have an appointment. No patients, doctor?"

He chucked. "No, actually, nothing until 10:30. I wouldn't usually have been here so early on a Friday, but-"

"HAH'nxgggshhhh! Huh'MMPHHHsshhhh! Fuck!!" 

"Bless you. You know, you really shouldn't hold in your-"

"I KNOW, Jesus!!" Cathy glared at him and he looked away. "I'm sorry. I just...I get that a lot, too." She smiled an exhausted smile at him. 

"Cathy, go home. You look awful." 

"Thanks," she said sarcastically. 

"Come on, you know what I mean. Just go home and rest. I'll be in touch over the next few days." He gathered his things and made his way to the door. "And Cathy? Let me know if you need anything....at all."

----------------------------------------------

I know it's not that long...but what do we think? More, or am I done?

[alpha_dog]

More please!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE this!!!!!!!!!! <3

[Nicole]

Cute. Thanks for the update!

[Alexandria]

I can't wait to read more i love this series!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Dawnie]

Fantastic. I'm so bummed that I had to get rid of Showtime. I started watching that show and I knew that I was going to like it very much just from the commercials. I was right. I loved the episode when she tricked her son into thinking that she killed herself in the tub. He screamed like alittle bitch. Is the son still alittle jerk. Does her family know she had cancer yet?

Anyway, GREAT job on the story.

[zakandsara]

Yes, she told her husband before she told her son, but they told him together at the end of the season finale. And LOTS of other amazing stuff happened, but I don't want to give it away to people who don't watch! You can watch the rest of the episodes here: http://www.sidereel.com/The_Big_C through streaming and stuff. Hope you enjoy! And thanks to everyone for the feedback! I'll get to work on another part soon, anything in particular you guys'd like to see?

[zakandsara]

Hey guys! I know it's been awhile, but I have a little more new stuff for you! Let me know what you all think; if you like it, I'll keep at it! Enjoy (Ps, Rebecca is played by the wonderful Cynthia Nixon)

-----------------------------------------------------------

She left the doctor's office feeling as terribly as she usually did after these weekly visits, yet slightly more guilty than she was used to. She tried as hard as she could to shake the feelings she was having for Todd, or at least find a way to validate them, but grew uninterested in that rapidly and ended up merely being able to blame it on her lack of sleep. However, before she had any more self-loathing thoughts (which, incidentally, she found becoming increasingly common these days) the ring of her cell phone jostled her back to reality.

She rummaged efficiently through her purse, still keeping one eye on the road, and managed to find the phone after only three rings. She flipped it open and propped it between her ear and her shoulder.

"Hello?" she barked, merging onto the highway past the strip club where she'd been taken by Marlene several days earlier.

"Mom, it's me. Rebecca's here. When are you coming home? She's like...freaking out."

Cathy sighed, desperately not wanting to have to go home and deal with her friend's dramas. "What's wrong with her, Adam? Where is she?"

"She's right next to me, but I have no idea whats wrong. I think it's a chick thing, so you better hurry your ass up." Adam, ever-so-sensitive, had only met Rebecca a few weeks ago, but since she'd come to town, he'd been seeing her almost daily and had become quite comfortable with her hanging around.

"Don't say ass. Alright, tell her....h-hold on, HET'chhishhhIEWW! Tell her I'll be home in 5 minutes. Send her up to my room if you want, just don't say anything stu..stupid- HA'tishhhhiew!!"

"Ugh whatever. Just hurry." And with that, he hung up the phone and she continued on her way home, wondering what could possibly be waiting for her.

----------------------------------------------

"Cathy?!!" she heard immediately upon stepping through the door. She threw her purse and her keys onto the table in the foyer and hopped a few steps to her left to grab a tissue off the coffee table. She walked with it held to her nose for several seconds, making her way toward the room Rebecca was yelling from. She didn't make it more than a few feet before she had to drape it across cupped hands and bend at the waist. "Hah-AHTTSCHHH." She straightened herself up and took three steps to find herself in the living room looking at Rebecca laying, upset, on her couch.

Rebecca sat up at the sudden entrance of her friend and Cathy could now see that tears were streaming down her face.

"What's the problem?" Cathy tried to sound as empathetic as she could.

Rebecca shook her head. "It's nothing. It's just...this whole thing with Sean and the baby and...do you think I made the wrong choice, staying here?"

"Honestly, Rebecca...I'm not entirely sure. I know you'll definitely have to work at a relationship with my dumbass brother, but from there...I'm not sure where you'll wind-HIHT'SCHHHH," she sneezed into the tissue, trying her hardest to suppress it the best she could by this point.

"God bless," Rebecca replied wiping away the tears that were streaming down her face.

"Yeah, thanks," Cathy answered, walking back to the table on the foyer and returning with the entire box of tissues, thought this time they were intended mostly for Rebecca's use.

"Thanks, Cathy," Rebecca mumbled, wiping her face with the tissue. Cathy nodded sympathetically and walked closer to her friend, motioning for her to move over. She sat beside Rebecca on the couch, ready to listen to her spill her heart out, but was greatly surprised to find her simply lay down, resting with her head in Cathy's lap. Cathy reached down and gently rubbed her best friend's back for a few wordless minutes, knowing that all she needed was comfort. They were both silent for a while. Cathy had assumed Rebecca had dozed off still on top of her, as she often did when they lived together in college and Rebecca came home too drunk to make it to the bed. Though Cathy might rather be elsewhere, she found herself actually enjoying the quiet of the room. She was, after all, getting to relax for the first time in about a week.  She almost dozed off herself but was bothered by a persistent tickle in the back of her nose. She rubbed at it softly, as not to shake Rebecca awake, but it was no use. She plugged her nose with her index finger and thumb and took a deep, shaky breath through her mouth: "Eh-NGGXTSSH!" She managed to hold it back enough not to startled Rebecca, but the force of the sneeze had caused Cathy to jerk forward and wake her up anyway.

"Hmmm?" Rebecca murmured, just coming back to reality. "What'd you say?" she asked, sitting up to face Cathy.

"Nothing. I just...I just sneezed. Didn't mean to wake you up," she apologized, arranging herself on the couch so that she could stretch out her legs after having been still for so long.

"Oh. That's okay. I was just resting anyway. Thanks for listening, Cath. You really are the only person who still gets me after all these years. To be honest, I figured you'd have gotten sick of me by this point. You always were more mature. But still...I'm so happy that you're around, even if I am a fucking shitty person."

Cathy laughed. "Oh please. I couldn't get rid of you if I tried. Come here," she said as she opened her arms to pull her friend in for a hug.

"So," Rebecca continued after they were done with the sappy speeches. "Who do you think you're trying to fool here?" she asked, mischievously.

"Wh-what do you mean?" Cathy answered, confused.

"Come on. The last time I saw you sneeze when you weren't sick was the time you took your shirt off and snorted all that pepper on a dare from those frat boys. And unless you're just coming back from a rager...well, I'll just assume you have a cold."

"You got me," Cathy chuckled. "And I can't believe you remember that party....Jesus, after that, I couldn't even look at pepper again for 20 years."

Rebecca laughed loudly. "Ah, those were the days. But seriously sweetie, do you need anything? I can run out and-"

"Oh god, no I'm fine! Please...when have you known me to WANT to be taken care of?"

"Alright. But the least you can do is let me hang around for the night. You know...just to make sure you're feeling better," Rebecca said with a smirk.

"I smell an ulterior motive, but hey- why the fuck not? Just make sure you stay away. You're pregnant, I don't want you to....ughhh-" Cathy cut herself off and held one finger up, telling Rebecca to wait. "HIHT'ESCHHHIEW!! NGX'TSCHHHHHO!"

"Well, god bless! Looks like I've got a great night in store..." she said, giggling.

"Thanks...and fuck you." The two girls looked at each other and laughed, knowing that the only thing that would be getting either of them through the night would be each other.

[sneezes]

aww i really love this story plz keeep going