_Beeep…. Beeeep …Beee—_

The phone picked up erupting with uproarious laughter and inaudible chatter, making Alex almost jump. He felt a twinge of envy and a mix of gloominess as he closed the door behind him.

"'**_Sup Alex?_**" Avery perked up.

“My life…” he tossed his phone on the bed.

“**_What?_**”

“Nothing... ” he plopped down, the mattress gently sinking.

"**_Hold on a sec. I'll head to my room._**" her voice blended with the liveliness in the background.

Alex took a cold, deep breath as he heard the noises slowly die. A door slammed shut declaring her solitude.

"**_Phew!_**" Avery huffed, "**_Boy, is it noisy down there..._**"

His grip on the phone tightened. Must be nice to be a part of a lively group, immersed in joy, without having death knocking at your door as a constant reminder. A wave of guilt hit him immediately.

"**_You there?_**"

"Yeah! yeah..." He quickly added, "What's the occasion?"

"**_Urghhhhhh_**" She groaned, "**_Don't ask. Mama Papa celebrating their aniversario. It's like a circus down there with all the invitados!_**"

"Uh huh..." Alex reached for his nightstand, dipping into the soft mattress.

"**_If I hear ONE MORE MARIACHI, I'm gonna scream._**" She sighed dramatically.

Alex let out a hollow laugh, drained of real joy as he listened to her vent. He stretched his hand, his fingers almost touching the drawer.

"**_What were you doing? Had called ya earlier. You didn't pick up._**"

Alex's hand froze. "I... I was at the doctor's..."

"**_Oh..._**"

An uneasy silence hung on both ends of the line. Alex imagined Avery shuffling in her seat, suddenly finding comfort in the faint mariachi playing downstairs.

"**_I see..._**" She finally spoke, "**_How did it go?_**"

"They said to continue to take my meds, and I'll be fine." He finally pulled open the drawer. The sight of neatly arranged boxes of tablets made him want to yank it out and hurl it through the window.

"**_Well, that's good..._**"

“Is it? 'Cuz I know they’re clearly— They're clearly lying!” Alex’s voice cracked from the weight of his frustration. His sheets crinkled as he sat up.

Avery took a pause, leaden with unknown fear. "**_Hey..._**"

Alex slid back until the wall pressed against his back. Its coolness seeped into him as if trying to soothe his riled-up nerves.

"**_What happened?_**"

"Heard the adults talk..." He drew his knees close to his chest. The tablet packet crinkled sharply in his hands. "They said my heart's only working at 40% efficiency"

Avery breathed a shaky sigh into her phone. "**_Alex, maybe It's not-_**"

"Don't, Avery." Alex swallowed hard, the taste of his vexation bitter in his throat. "It's not like your life is dangling on a thread..."

"**_Listen up, Chase!_**" Avery's tone was sharp, making him flinch, "**_That's how everybody's lives work! I'm as likely to die as you are. The ceiling could collapse on me, a sniper could shoot me in the eye-

pfft- I could even fall off the stairs and hit my head!

Are you listening, tonto?_**"

'I- Yes" He stammered, shaken up by her sudden change of tone, "It was just... overwhelming..."

"**_It- It's the same for all of us, Alex!_**" Avery fired up, her frustration mingled with the weight of acceptance, "**_And watching you give up is the worst! You've got a problem, we tackle it head-on! lo entiendes, amigo?_**"

"You're right, Guess I didn't see it comi-"

"_Sí mama?!_" Her voice was pulled back downstairs, giving Alex some space to breathe. He picked his phone from the bed, relieved to find it hadn't overheated from Avery's fiery

outburst.

She retuned back, muttering every possible angry-sounding spanish curses under her breathe. "**_Mama needs help. I've been summoned._**"

"I see…” Alex’s voice shook, in a poor attempt to mask his laughter. “Is it some emergency rescue mission or just doing the dishes?

“**_Ha-Ha. Very funny, Chase. Quit smirking, I can hear it from here_**” She grumbled, her voice laced with a hint of amusement. “**_Keep it up and I’ll send my madré after you!_**”

“**_Oh no no, Señora Avery!_**” He dramatically cried, picturing himself moping Avery’s living room, “**_Anything but that! Have mercy!_**”

“**_Mmhmm?_**” She hummed sarcastically as she neared the dreaded noises of the Mariachi.

“May the luck of the tortillas be with you!”

“**_You’re impossible!_**” She hung up, finally giving into a laughter as she did so.

Alex breathed out a sigh, the weight of his reality feeling lighter. Amidst his confusion and desperation, rose a new determination. He was going to fight his battle. And he definitely wasn’t going to give up.