I stepped onto the pavement of Los Angeles, California a nervous wreck. I couldn’t believe I was here, alone in a strange city. The air was much warmer than New York, and it felt like the sun shined brighter. I put on my sunglasses and hailed a cab. I handed the driver a piece of scrap paper from the airport in Michigan and told him to take me to that address. He pulled up to the building and, as he drove away, I stood there, examining my surroundings. I walked around the side of the rental office where I met Mason, the manager of the apartment building.
“Hi, I’m Mason Grant and I manage these wonderful apartments. You must be Ellery?”
I extended my hand to greet his. “Yes, I am.”
“Fabulous,” he said as he turned and grabbed a key off the board.
We walked over to the next building, and he took me up to the third-floor apartment. He inserted the key and opened the door. I walked in and looked around. It was fully furnished and clean, and that was all I needed. Before I agreed to rent it, I needed to talk to Mason first. I asked him to sit at the table. He looked at me awkwardly as he sat down.
“Let me guess, you’re running from the law?”
“No, it’s not like that.” I laughed. “I can’t leave a paper trail because it’ll make it easier for someone to find me.”
He leaned in closer. “Oh, now you have me intrigued. Please continue.”
I continued with the story about why I was here and all about Connor. I went as far as to show him my tattoos. He grabbed my wrists and stared at them. Then he looked at me with a tear in his eye. “You had me at hi.”
I laughed and he reached over and hugged me. We came to the agreement that I wouldn’t sign a lease and that I would pay cash every month for as long as I needed to stay, but I had to promise one thing; I had to come to his place for dinner and meet his partner, Landon. I agreed and hugged him as he handed me the keys to my new apartment.
I looked around. It was bigger than my box back in New York. The thing that excited me most was the fireplace in the living room. The kitchen was much more spacious with its white cabinets and black granite countertops. This place had everything I needed right down to the BUNN coffee maker. I walked to the bedroom and set my bag on the bed. The first thing I had to do was go get a new cell phone.
I walked down the street to the shopping center and slipped inside the wireless store. I glanced at the wall that indicated “PREPAID PHONES.” I picked the phone, paid, and headed to the little grocery store at the end of the strip. I picked up some essentials and carried my bags back to the apartment. I was exhausted by the time I got back. I put my food away, sat on my couch, and text-messaged Peyton.
“DO NOT store my name in your phone, and delete these texts after you read them.”
“Are you some secret agent now?”
“Very funny. What’s going on?”
“All is quiet on the home front so far. Connor did ask me to let him know if I hear from you. Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”
“Yes, I have to go; remember to delete.”
I unpacked my bag and put everything away in the dresser and closet. The one thing I was missing that I needed was an easel and paint. I walked downstairs to Mason’s apartment and knocked on the door.
“Hello, fabulous,” he answered exuberantly, “Come in.” I walked into his beautifully decorated apartment that was bigger than mine.
“Do you know where there’s an art store close by?”
He looked at me and cocked his head. “An art store? As in completed paintings, or artsy supply stuff?”
I laughed. “Artsy supply stuff.”
He turned his head and yelled, “Landon, come meet our new tenant that lives upstairs!”
Landon, who looked like he just stepped out of the pages of a GQ magazine, strutted across the floor with his hand held out.
“Nice to meet you, Ellery.” He smiled as he kissed my hand.
“Miss Fabulous wants to go to the artsy supply store, so I say, let’s take her.”
“Oh no, that’s okay. If you’ll just tell me where it is I can go myself.”
Mason and Landon laughed. “Don’t be silly, we’ll take you. Someone has to show you around L.A.”
I got into the back seat of their 2009 Volvo as the boys drove me to the art store. I knew exactly what I needed, so I wasn’t in there very long. I picked up an easel, a variety of paint colors, canvases, and brushes.
“I’m so excited to see what you’re going to paint,” Landon said as he carried my easel up the stairs for me.
There was a perfect spot in the corner between two windows where it fit perfectly. I was exhausted, and it was already midnight California time, and I was still on New York time. I needed sleep badly. I had an early appointment in the morning that I couldn’t miss. I slid into my new queen-size bed and was surprised at how fast I drifted to sleep.
***
I opened my eyes and had to remember I wasn’t in New York anymore. I still couldn’t believe I was in California. I took a shower and put on a cute little beige sundress and flip-flops. I pulled my hair to a side braid and headed out the door. One of the main reasons I took the apartment was because it was within walking distance of the place I would be visiting frequently.
When I reached my destination, I stood in front of the infamous Cedars Sinai Grace Hospital. I met with Dr. Danielle Murphy, who was the head of the new cancer clinical trial involving cancer treatment injections and immunotherapy.
“Nice to meet you, Ellery,” Dr. Murphy said as she motioned for me to sit down. “So, you were first diagnosed with leukemia at age sixteen?” she asked as she looked at me.
I nodded.
“You had twenty-four chemotherapy treatments and went into remission, and now, at twenty-three years old, the leukemia came back.”
“Yes,” I said as I looked down at my hands.
“First of all, let me tell you that I’m sorry you did and are going through that again, but I was very pleased when I got your email because I think you’re the perfect candidate for our clinical trial.” I sat there, listening to her with enthusiasm in her voice.
“You’ve had one chemo treatment, which was almost two weeks ago. Correct?”
I nodded my head. She closed my file and threw it on the desk.
“Ellery, look at me. You’re in the trial, and this is how it’s going to work. I’m going to send you home with some immunotherapy pills. It’s a cocktail, like chemo, but with less side effects, and you are to take them every day you’re in this trial. Then, you come here once a month for three injections over the span of three months. Once you receive your last injection, we’ll do all the necessary testing to see if you’re cancer free. If the cancer is still there, but you’re getting better, then we will continue treatment for another three months. I see here in your medical file that you had stem cells removed before you received treatment when you were sixteen.”
I narrowed my eyes at her. “I had forgotten about that.”
She crossed her arms and ankles and leaned back on the desk. “Well, it’s a good thing you had it done because my recommendation is that you undergo a stem cell transplant once you’re better to prevent this disease from coming back later in life. Now, sit tight while I get your pills and then you’re free to go,” she said as she patted me on the shoulder.
I pulled out my phone and text-messaged Peyton. “What’s the lowdown on Mr. B?”
“Mr. B isn’t talking. He says he hasn’t heard from you, but he’d let me know if he did. Elle, he’s weird. He’s acting normal. I’m so sorry.”
There was one piece of my heart that started to heal when he took care of me after my chemo treatment. Now, that piece shattered into even more pieces than before. Tears started to sting my eyes as Dr. Murphy came back and handed me a bag full of pills.
“Here you go, Ellery. You are to take these pills first thing in the morning before you eat, and I’m scheduling your first round of injections two weeks from today.”
I managed a half-smile as I thanked her and walked out the door. The minute the warm California air hit my skin, the tears began to flow freely. I barely made it home before my legs started to shake. I made it up to my apartment and fell to the floor, sobbing into my hands. A loud knock startled me.
“Elle, it’s Mason. Please open up; I can hear you crying.”
I turned around, still on the floor, and reached up to open the door. Mason looked down and met me on the floor.
“What’s wrong?” he asked as he hugged me. My shoulders moved up and down as I tried to talk.
“I’m pretty sure Connor gave up on me.”
“Sweetie, you don’t know that for sure.” He pulled me closer. He sat with me on the floor while I cried. “Maybe he’s just giving the two of you some space.”
“I don’t know. Peyton said he’s acting normal. How the fuck can he act normal when I’m a total mess?”
“Guys are different, Elle. They don’t wear their hearts on their sleeves like women do. Give him some time. I’m sure he’s just as upset but not letting Peyton know it.”
I nodded my head and got up from the floor.
“Thanks, Mason. I appreciate it.”
He hugged me tight and left to go back to his apartment.
I spent the rest of the day painting a vision that I had in my mind of a Cape Cod-style house that sat surrounded by grass. I envisioned a short stone wall that went around the property, and an archway that led to steps going down to a small private beach with a boat and a lighthouse. I was going to paint two versions: one day and one night. I had nothing but time on my hands, and painting was my escape from this reality into another with peace and tranquility.