Lydia Chong

Mr. Milner
Exit Project

FIX ME, HEAL ME.

Writing Component #3

He opened the door and took a small step outside. The cold air stung his face and
the sun burned his eyes. Squinting, he began his walk to the therapists office. The
snow crunched under his worn out boots as he approached the front door. He
hesitantly turned the door knob and stepped inside the building.
Hi... um, Im Alex, he said quietly to a woman sitting behind a large desk.
Hmm let's see here... Alex Simpson?, he nodded slightly and the lady replied,
Go right on in dear as she pointed to a room on her left.
Alex dragged his feet down the hall then, entered a rather messy room and sat
down in a leather chair. Moments later, a young woman appeared in the doorway.
She smiled at him and introduced herself, Hello Alex, my name is Luna Peters,
how are you today?
Alex was unable to find the words to reply. Luna sat down in the chair across from
him and picked up a pen and a notebook.
So, why did you came to talk to me today? she questioned.
Alex shrugged, still unable to respond. The therapist soon noticed his
nervousness, placed her hand gently on his and spoke softly.
You can talk to me Alex, I'm here to help and to heal. Tell me everything, from
the very beginning.
He took a deep breath, looked into her eyes and began to tell his story.
Alex awoke to the sound of glass shattering and his parents yelling. He looked at
his alarm clock, it was 4 a.m. Suddenly a door slammed shut and shook his room.
The noise stopped. Alex quickly jumped out of bed and sprinted downstairs. He
found his mother sitting alone at the kitchen table with her head buried in her
hands.
Mom? Alex whispered as he looked around the house, Whered dad go?
She shook her head without looking up at him.
Please. Go back to bed Alex she replied with a shaky and exhausted voice.
And so, Alex silently climbed upstairs and crawled back into bed but, he couldnt
sleep. He knew something terribly wrong happened, but he didnt dare to ask any

more questions.
Countless days passed, weeks, then months, with no sign of his dad. His mother
now woke extremely early and worked late almost every night. She almost never
showed any signs of sadness or grief. At that time, Alex and his mom depended on
each other greatly and every moment spent together was always special. They
supported and loved each other more than anything in the world. Ale smiled more
than ever during this time.
Alex studied hard through his school years, always striving to make his mom proud
with the dream of becoming a successful scientist. He graduated with honours and
was given a full scholarship to a university only a few hours from home. Upon
accepting, he promised his mother he'd come and visit every other weekend.
The car was packed and he was ready to go. Alex hugged his mother tightly and
then sat down in the driver's seat. Just as he was starting the engine he noticed his
mother stumble backwards.
Are you alright mom? Alex yelled from the car.
Suddenly, she collapsed onto the sidewalk, shaking uncontrollably. Alex ran to her
side.
Mom! Mom?! Answer me! he cried.
Alex quickly dialed 911 and an ambulance came immediately to rushed them to the
hospital.
"She needs to have someone be by her side 24/7 to take care of her. We are
prescribing her 5 pills to take each day and it is very much recommended for her to
not be under stress and stay in bed as much as possible. This is the only way she
maybe able to live with this brain tumor. Although the chances of survival is slim,
these pills will give her the extra time she needs. Make sure your father
understands this and ensures that she eats her pills." stated the doctors.
Alex shook his head in annoyance. "My father left us years ago, I'll be the one to
take care of her," he replied bitterly.
He drove her home the next day and hesitantly unpacked all of his things. He
moved the TV to her room and set up an area for all her medications. He cooked all
her meals and cleaned the house day after day. Alex soon had no time for friends, a
girlfriend, a job or school. One by one his friends stopped caring and continued on
with their lives. Alexs mom tried to convince him to leave and live his life, but he
refused.
Several months passed, each one grimmer than the last. Alex hardly left the house.
The only people he talked to were his mother and the doctors. He sat often alone in
the darkened living room, watching the people in the park smile.

Im tired. he quietly wept into his hands.

As more days passed, he began to blame himself for his mother's illness.
"I did this!", he screamed throwing China plates at the walls. "I overworked her, I
made her suffer! Now, she's dying and it's all my fault!" Another plate shattered
into hundreds of pieces.
"Alex?" His mother called from her bed. He ran as fast as he could to her side.
"Alex." she weakly held his hands. "I need you to promise me something okay?"
He nodded. "Promise me that when I'm gone, you'll move on with your life and
have your happy ending. Become my handsome little scientist and smile again
okay?" She choked as tears flowed from their eyes. "I can't get any better
but...you...you can. I love you Alex." Her grip became weaker as her head tilted
gently to her side. She passed peacefully and all at once, leaving Alex to sob all
alone.
The months after her passing, were dreadful. More glass broke as Alex screamed
and cried but, no one heard him. He couldn't bear to walk past her bedroom and
leaving the house was impossible. Alex started talking to the walls. Telling them
his feelings for they were the only ones who'd listen.
One morning, he awoke to the warm sun in his face, it reminded him of his
mother. He began to remember the promise he made with her. "Mom? It's time
isn't it?" He asked the picture of them hugging and smiling beside his bed. Almost
as if she was there, he felt like he was once again in her comforting embrace.
"And that's how I ended up here this afternoon." He stated as he looked up at the
white clock above Luna's head. It took him a moment to realize how long he'd
been talking for and how out of breath he was. "So, can you fix me?" He asked
hesitantly.
"Well Alex, I can tell you one thing for certain. I can't 'fix' you, there's no such
thing as getting 'fixed' but, I can most definitely help you heal. I won't give up on
you okay?" She stated. "That'll be it today Alex, you did great! Same time
Wednesday?"
Alex nodded. He felt relieved, as if a weight has been lifted off his shoulders.
"Okay." He shrugged.
Just as he was walking out the door he turned to see her smiling at him and finally,
for the first time since his mother's death, he smiled back.

Lydia Chong
Mr. Milner
Exit Project

FIX ME, HEAL ME.

Writing Component #3

I decided to improve "FIX ME, HEAL ME" because I devoted a lot of time into
writing this story.
When I started planning it out, I already knew I wanted to write a courage
themed story. But because I wanted a secondary theme to go along with courage, I
had difficulty deciding if I wanted to have a romance or tragedy. Ultimately, I
choose tragedy over romance because I didn't want the romance overshadowing
the main theme.
Being able to write this types of story that provoked sad emotions was (for
some reason) the easy to do. Regarding the storyline, that just came naturally as I
was writing it. I also wanted the main character to be a boy because I wanted a
mother-son relationship. When I was deciding between the romance and tragedy
genre, I actually planned to have Alex fall in love with the doctor and she'd fill in
the void in his life.
Being able to reread this story was good for me because I was able to look over
my story again with fresh eyes. I noticed all the small mistakes I made and fixed
some of the sentences that seemed a little off. I learned that you can always
improve your work because when I finished it and handed it in in the past, I
thought I was perfect.