ina tried opening her eyes, but it was hard to do so. She was sure they were swollen from crying so hard. She still couldn't believe that her grandmother was dying and there was nothing she could do about it.

The fact that she had called her sister Naomi to share the depressing news, and she didn't pick up also angered her. She had left her a voicemail, and that was hours ago. She had even called her mother but got no response from her.

Nina sighed and trudged into the bathroom. She took a glimpse in the mirror and winced. Not only were her eyes red, but they were also swollen. Nina turned on the faucet and washed her face. She splashed the cold water on her face.

Nina stripped off her pajamas and turned on the hot and cold water of the bathtub to get the perfect temperature. She got into the tub and grabbed her loofah. She put her vanilla-scented body wash on it, inhaling the scent, and scrubbed her body.

She wanted to wash away all the emotions she was feeling just like the soap that was washing away from her body. Nina continued to scrub her body as she thought of what she would do when she actually lost her grandmother.

Nina turned off the water and stepped out of the tub. She dried herself off with a white cotton towel and lotioned her body with the same vanilla scent as the soap. She wandered back into the bedroom she had used when she was younger.

It still had pictures of some of her favorite artists on the wall. A small table was positioned in front of the window with a small laptop on top. Nina searched through the small closet and got out a pair of blue skinny jeans and a white t-shirt.

She put her braids into a ponytail high atop her head. She didn't bother to put on any makeup. She only put lip balm on her lips. Nina walked into the kitchen where she saw her grandmother humming an old R&B song by Patti Labelle.

Nina watched her cook eggs and continue to sing while scrambling the eggs in the iron skillet. Nina was amazed at how happy she still looked at knowing her time was almost up. Wasn't she afraid?

Now, she had to convince her grandmother to come to live with her at Tristan's apartment. She had received a text from him but she didn't respond. It was around the time her Grandmother had told her the bad news.

"Grandma, are you sure there's nothing else we can do?" she asked, sitting down at the table.

"I'm sure. My body and soul are tired. I don't want to go through any more treatments."

"But grandma-"

"Nina, I know you're concerned and scared for me but this is my decision," she said, placing the eggs on a ceramic plate.

Nina sighed. "I am scared. I don't want to lose you."

Tears prickled her eyes threatening to fall again.

Grandma placed the pancakes and bacon on the table and sat down across from Nina.

"I know you're scared. I am too but I want you to know I'll always be with you."

Nina choked on her tears.

Grandma reached across and grabbed her hands.

"Before I die, I want to see you get married to someone who will treat you right. I want to make sure you'll have someone by your side who will take care of you and help you when I'm gone."

Nina's eyes widened, with tears still streaking down her cheeks.

"Is that your wish? To see me get married?" Nina asked, still shocked at the news.

"Yes, that's my dying wish. I want to see you happy again and I want to make sure you're left in good hands," she said, squeezing Nina's hand.

Nina's mind wandered. How was she supposed to find a man who would marry her in a short amount of time? She didn't have much time left and Nina was horrible at marriage and love nor did she want it. Maybe Nina could find some guy and make him pretend like they were in a loving relationship to make her grandmother's wish come true.

Nina smiled. "I'll see what I can do."

"Good," she said, patting Nina's hand.

"There's something else I want to discuss with you," Nina said, pouring syrup over her pancakes. She really didn't have much appetite but if she didn't eat her grandmother would worry.

"What is it?" she asked, drinking her orange juice.

"I finally got a job being a nanny."

"That's good news. I told you you would find something."

"Yes, but I would have to move into his mansion," she said, picking at the eggs on her plate.

"Mansion? Is he rich?"

Nina nodded. "Yes, but I told him I had reservations about moving in because I didn't want to leave you."

"Don't worry about me. I have the dog. I'll be fine."

"I want you to go with me to his mansion," she said, looking back at her grandmother.

"I've lived here half my life. I don't want to move. This house has so many memories for me and I don't want to leave that comfort."

Nina sighed knowing that her grandmother wasn't going to change her mind.

"What if something happens to you and I'm not here?"

"I can get one of those life alerts if that makes you feel better enough to accept the job. This is a good opportunity for you and I don't want to hold you back."

"Getting the life alert would make me feel better. I'll look into it."

Her grandmother smiled and Nina smiled back at her. Even though she smiled back at her, the pain in her chest expanded at knowing she wouldn't be able to see her smile on the regular in the future.

After eating and washing the dishes, Nina decided to call Tristan. She laid across her bed. She pulled up Tristan's number and dialed it.

"Hello," he said, picking up on the third ring.

Nina's stomach erupted in butterflies at the sound of his voice and she didn't like it one bit.

"I'm sorry I'm just now getting back to you," she said, nibbling at her bottom lip.

"It's okay. Did something happen?"

Nina heard a door closing in the background.

"Why do you think that?" she asked, wondering how he could possibly know.

"Your voice sounds different. I don't know how to put it but you sound upset."

Nina got quiet at that. How the hell could he tell that? They barely know each other.

"Hello, are you there?" he asked.

Nina imagined him frowning in confusion.

"I'm here. You can have the men come on Monday to pick up my things. I've already started packing."

"That's great. I'll call them after we hang up."

Nina heard the happiness in his voice even though she tried to ignore it.

"What about your grandma?"

Nina clamped down on her bottom lip to keep the emotions at bay.

"She...she decided to stay home. I'm going to look into getting a life alert for her."

"Don't bother. I can have a nurse come and check on her every day," he said.

Nina heard typing in the background and a chair squeak.

Nina waved her hand in the air as if he could actually see her.

"That's too expensive. You don't have to-"

"It's not a problem, Nina. I want to make sure everything's squared away for you before you move in. I want to make sure you're comfortable with everything before you do so."

"Tristan, it's still too much," she said.

"I'm going to call the movers. I'll let you know when the nurse can come out. Bye."

Nina said hello but there was no response.

***

Hey, guys. What do you think of Nina's grandmother telling her she wants to see her married before she dies? How do you think Nina is handling her grandmother having cancer? Let me know what you think in the comment section below. If you enjoyed this chapter, don't forget to comment, vote, and share :).