3.

Bella

The night sky above was adorned with a tapestry of stars, their distant shimmer a stark contrast to the darkness that weighed upon my heart. I walked along the worn path, each step echoing my silent wishes for a fate different from the one I had been handed. As I pushed open the door to the familiar bar, the sound of laughter and glasses clinking filled the air – a stark reminder of the normalcy that always seemed out of reach for me.

The bar was crowded, people drowning their worries in drinks and laughter. It was a sight that sometimes filled me with a pang of jealousy. How I wished I could enjoy life's simple pleasures without the constant weight of problems bearing down on me. For me, moments of joy were a rarity, elusive as a fleeting dream.

I walked further inside, greeted by the dim lighting and the familiar buzz of chatter. My coworker Nate was behind the counter, a friendly smile on his face that quickly faded when he saw me. His concerned gaze met my puffy eyes, and I knew he could sense something was amiss.

"Hey, Bella, you okay?" he asked, his voice laced with genuine concern.

I brushed off his question with a forced smile, a skill I had perfected over the years. It was a facade that concealed the turmoil beneath, a mask I wore to shield the pain that I carried. No one could see the cracks in my armor, the struggles I faced every day.

I exchanged a few words with Nate before heading to my assigned station. Putting on my uniform, I slipped into my role, adopting the persona that was expected of me – a server, there to take orders and provide a semblance of normalcy to the patrons. The hours would stretch on, the night filled with the clinking of glasses, laughter, and the distant hum of conversations.

But amidst the chaos of the bar, my thoughts were elsewhere. I had set an alarm, a reminder to visit Nina at the hospital. I had managed to persuade one of the nurses to keep an eye on her while I was away. The results of her medical tests were pending, and I hoped they would provide answers to her condition. But for now, my focus was on doing my job well, earning my paycheck, and treading the thin line that kept our fragile life from falling apart completely.

The night wore on, each passing hour marked by the relentless gaze of our boss, a man with a zero-tolerance policy for mistakes in his bar. My body ached from the sheer exhaustion of working nonstop, twenty-four hours a day, for an entire week. But even as fatigue weighed me down, I pushed myself to summon whatever energy remained within me.

Taking customer orders became a mechanical routine, my feet moving almost of their own accord as I navigated through the crowded space. Amidst the the voices, clinking glasses, and laughter, my senses were on high alert.

Just as I was about to approach a new table, my cell phone vibrated in my pocket. My heart skipped a beat as I noticed an unknown number flashing on the screen. An icy chill crawled up my spine, my instincts screaming that something was amiss. With trembling hands, I hesitated before answering the call, my tension reinforcing.

As soon as I heard the voice on the other end, a jolt of shock and disbelief coursed through me. The air around me grew thin as the weight of the voice settled upon me. Panic surged within me, and before I knew it, my legs were carrying me towards the exit.

Without sparing a second glance, I burst out of the bar, the noise and chaos behind me fading into the background. My heart pounded in my chest, each beat echoing the rush of emotions flooding through me. The world around me blurred as I raced forward, driven by a mixture of fear, desperation, and an overwhelming need to confront whatever awaited me on the other end of the call.

Sitting in the sterile confines of the doctor's office, my heart seemed to have taken on a life of its own, thudding against my ribcage like a frantic caged bird. The seconds stretched on, each one laden with the weight of uncertainty, as I awaited the doctor's words that would determine my sister Nina's fate. Dr. Matthews, remained engrossed in his computer screen before finally shifting his gaze to me, his eyes fixing on my anxious expression.

"Are you the only family member?" he inquired, his voice gentle yet probing. "Where are your parents?"

My gaze fell to the floor, avoiding his probing eyes. I took a deep breath before responding, my voice tinged with sorrow. "My mother is no longer with us. It's just me – I'm the only family she has left."

The curiosity in his eyes lingered, but he moved on, perhaps sensing that my circumstances were far from ordinary. And then, as if sensing my burning need to know, I asked, "How is she?"

Dr.Matthews removed his glasses, and his demeanor shifted slightly. Leaning forward, he met my gaze, his expression somber. "Your sister's condition is critical. She's been diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy." His words hung in the air like a heavy cloud, and I felt a sudden tightness constricting my chest.

"Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy?" I echoed, my voice barely above a whisper. The term was foreign to me, a jumble of syllables that held an alarming weight.

He nodded, his eyes never leaving mine. "Yes, it's a condition that has affected her heart. It's a thickening of the heart muscles, and it's causing her heart to struggle to pump blood effectively."

A sudden wave of disbelief and despair washed over me. My mind raced, trying to process what he was saying. Nina had never shown signs of such a sickness before. My sister had always been delicate, but this was something entirely different.

"And what can be done?" I managed to choke out, my voice trembling.

Dr. Matthews's gaze held sympathy as he delivered the blow that felt like a physical blow to my chest. "I'm afraid the only viable option is a heart transplant. Her heart is in critical condition, and without a transplant, her recovery is... not promising."

My heart seemed to stop in that moment, as if his words had frozen it within my chest. The room spun around me, and I struggled to catch my breath. My sister, my Nina, needed a new heart – a lifeline that felt impossible to secure in the face of our circumstances. The reality crashed over me like a tidal wave, threatening to drown me in a sea of despair.

Even in that heart-wrenching moment, I mustered the strength to ask the question that weighed heavily on my mind. My voice trembled as I inquired, "Dr. Matthews, what's the cost for my sister's heart transplant? And how much does it take to treat her hypertrophic cardiomyopathy?"

The specter of finances loomed over me, an ever-present concern that seemed to intensify in times of crisis. I braced myself for his answer, hoping against hope that the figures wouldn't be as huge as I feared. But I needed to know, needed to confront the financial challenges that lay ahead.

Dr. Matthews met my gaze with sympathy, his expression somber as he mentioned the daunting numbers that hung in the air like a heavy cloud. "The estimated cost for a heart transplant can range in the hundreds of thousands to over a million dollars, depending on various factors. As for the treatment of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, it can also be quite substantial, with costs for medications, tests, and ongoing care."

And then, his words struck like a dagger through my heart, "And if the bill isn't arranged in a timely manner... I'm afraid your sister's condition could worsen."

As I stood there, my heart felt as though it might tear apart at the sight of my sister lying in the emergency room, fighting for her life. Helpless tears streamed down my cheeks, each one a testament to the pain that clenched at my chest. How could I ever hope to raise the money needed when my part-time earnings barely amounted to anything? My mother's passing had left us with nothing, not even a thousand dollars, let alone the millions required for Nina's treatment.

The weight of hopelessness pressed down on me until I could no longer bear it. I rushed out of the hospital, unable to witness my little sister's suffering any longer. Collapsing onto the cold pavement, I gazed up at the night sky, a silent plea escaping my lips. "Moon goddess, why must you test me like this? Why must you subject me to such suffering?" I didn't care if anyone heard my desperate words. The frustration and agony within me demanded a voice, a release.

I shouted, voicing the impossible challenge that lay before me. "How could I possibly gather a million dollars in such a short span of time for my sister's medical expenses? Tell me!"  The night air absorbed my cries, offering no answers, no relief.

And then, unexpectedly, a voice behind me shattered the silence. A male voice, gentle yet firm, broke through my anguish.  "Maybe I  have a solution to your problems."

I barely had time to react before the figure rounded and stood in front of me. A gasp almost escaped my lips as my eyes met his. Time seemed to pause, the world narrowing down to just the two of us. I felt a shiver run down my spine, a mix of uncertainty and something else I couldn't quite define. This man wasn't ordinary; his presence held an air of something otherworldly. His eyes held a depth that seemed to see beyond the surface, reaching into the core of my being. A jolt of fear shot through me – could he be sent by the moon goddess, here to claim my life as well?

A bitter chuckle almost escaped me as his words registered. "I will pay for your sister's treatment and every other bills, if you agree to be my Luna for a year." The words hung in the air, an absurd proposal that I struggled to comprehend. It had to be one of the strangest, most outrageous offers I had ever encountered. Was this some kind of sick joke, a twisted prank played by fate itself? The moon goddess must truly be toying with me, throwing me into the midst of this surreal scenario.