It's a Far Better Thing to Give Than to Recieve: Part 1

by Leilee


Disclaimer: I own nothing. Marvel owns almost everything used here. Allison is my character, but is heavily based on my student Allison. If you take her without permission, AKA steal her, I will send all my Little Dragon (3, 4 and 5 year old) students after you, and they WILL beat the crap out of you. Literally.

Rating:hm....PG. Tops.

Archivers: Sure. Take it. Just tell me when and where. I like to brag. :-)


***Snow Valley Hospital***

The little girl cried as the doctor stuck the needle into her hipbone, drawing out the spongy matter that filled the inside of it. It didn't hurt. But she could still feel it pull at her insides. The doctors and nurses patted her shoulder reassuringly and they pulled the last of the marrow out. Then they pulled out the needle. She screamed. Not because it hurt, but on general principle. It felt good to scream. It made her feel better. She was tired of being sick. She was tired of feeling bad. And if screaming made her feel better, then by god, she would scream her head off.

The doctor smiled sadly as the spunky little girl was wheeled out, throwing a fit. She was only four, but the leukemia had ravaged her tiny body. If nothing else could be said about the girl, she showed more will to live than any other patient he'd ever had.

Unfortunately, this was her last chance. Radiation and Chemotherapy had worked before, but the cancer always came back. In order for her to survive, she needed a bone marrow transplant, and soon. If they couldn't find one, he was afraid that she would die within six months.

***Massachusetts Academy for Gifted Children***

Angelo ran after Jubilee, murder in his eyes. "Jubilee! How could you do that!"

"I didn't mean to!" shouted Jubilee as she dodged all of Angelo's attempts to grab her.

"What do you mean you didn't mean to break my TLC CD!"

Jubilee ran down the steps at breakneck speed. "I'll buy you a new one."

Angelo continued to chase after her, saying nothing. Jubilee tried to turn the corner, but tripped on the rug and pitched forward. She let out a high-pitched scream as she fell through the glass door. The glass shattered around her, sending flashes of reflected light in various directions. Jubilee whimpered as she tried to sit up and cried out in sudden pain. Blood welled up and oozed down her arms, legs and head in various cuts. But the worst was on her arm, where a long shard of glass protruded from the inside of her forearm. The blood seeped around it heavily. Angelo ran over to her and picked her up gently in his strong arms, bunching up his skin into his arms to cushion her. "Jubecita?" he asked as he carefully took her pulse. It was very fast, and she was losing a lot of blood.

Jubilee felt very dizzy and lightheaded. Something wasn't right. She knew, as much as she hated to admit it, that she needed help, now. "Angelo...get Frosty...now." she whispered weakly as she drifted into the blackness of shock.

***Snow Valley Hospital***

The little girl as the nurse inserted the IV in her arm once again. She hated this. She knew the chemo wasn't working. She had heard the doctor say so. She hugged her teddy tighter. She didn't know what she looked like anymore. Her chin-length straight brown hair had fallen out, and she had become almost skeletal with a heavy "moon-face." Her pale skin had become chalky with angry purple bruises around her mouth from the constant vomiting. Her parents had stopped visiting, except on Sundays. They said it was because of the new baby, but she knew that they were afraid they'd catch it, regardless of what the doctor said. Before she could continue on this train on thought, she grabbed the basin that the nurse had discretely placed nearby and started to throw up.

***Snow Valley Hospital Waiting Room***

Angelo and Emma sat in the waiting room, watching mundane daytime talk shows and informing themselves of what was happening in the world two years ago. Jerry Springer's nasal voice and the guests' southern twangs combined with the rustling papers and endless sobbing to create a cacophony of noise that grated on their nerves. Angelo stood up and walked outside to smoke a cigarette. As he lit the cancer stick and inhaled that first dose of nicotine, he reflected on what happened. He was worried, although he hid it rather well. There had been so much blood. It had seeped quickly, staining the car and his clothing. She had looked so small and fragile. Jubilee tended to make up for her small stature with her exuberance and effervescence. But now she just looked small and young.

<*Angelo, please come back inside at once. *>

Angelo calmly flicked his half-smoked cigarette into the street and walked back into the ER's waiting room.

***Snow Valley Hospital - Patient's ward***

The little girl watched as they wheeled a new patient in to share her room. She had shoulder length black hair and angry red cuts on her face and arms. She whimpered in her sleep as the IV dripped blood and morphine into her veins. The nurse gently took the new girl's temperature and blood pressure. She smoothed her sheet, smiled at the little girl and left.

As soon as the nurse left, the little girl scampered off her bed and looked at the new girl's medical bracelet, trying to sound out her name. "Jubi..." She couldn't read the rest. She only started learning to read a little while ago. Jubi began to thrash a little on her bed, as if caught in the throes of a nightmare. The little girl gently pressed on her shoulders and began to sing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Jubi started to calm down and settle into a deep sleep. After she started to breathe evenly, the little girl climbed back into bed, snuggled under the covers and fell asleep.