Headache

Cassandra Cillian woke up in her room at the annex with a pounding headache. Which was without a doubt the worst way to wake up. She always had bad days but her headache days were the worst. If she was at home, she would start with a cup of lemon tea. And a butter croissant. She then would curl up on the couch and watch a stack of Disney movies until the love stories and soothing music scared away the pain. Then she would crawl back to bed and sleep until the headache gave way to nightmares. The next day there would be a twinge of pain and nose bleeds. Today however she would not have any of that because she was on case with the other librarians. She brushed her hair and pulled it out of her eyes. She then chose a grey skirt, grey tee and brown cardigan to keep away the chills. Bright colors made her headache worse. She glanced in the mirror, she was pale and her eyes were dimmer than usual. She opened the door and walked down stairs. She could fake smile, she been doing it for years.

As she walked down the stairs, she was met at the bottom of the stairs by Jenkins. Jenkins approached with a steaming cup of tea.

"I think you prefer lemon on days like this?" Jenkins asked.

Cassandra's eyes widen and began to ask.

Jenkins shook his head and responded "Please miss Cillian, I was a fabled Knight. I think should be able to tell when someone is not feeling good."

Cassandra sighed "Please don't say anything."

Jenkins shook his head again and said "There is an Mp3 player on your desk and I've told Colonel Baird that you would prefer to do research here today. She understands."

Cassandra didn't know how she felt about this news but joined the others for briefing. Baird divided up the team and true to his word, Cassandra stayed behind. Although today she did not mind. After Baird, Jones and Stone left for the case. Cassandra popped in her ear buds and was surrounded by the soothing Disney tunes. She could manage today, she could manage her brain grape, and she could still be a librarian even with the headache from Hades. She pulled out her notebook and scribbled. Jenkins turned off the annex foyer light and moved the phone into another room. After a while she slipped into a fitful sleep.

Hours later Cassandra awoke to a dark foyer and noticed that she was wrapped in a light blanket. Another cup of lemon tea steamed in front of her. She also noticed she was alone except for Jenkins who was bustling around an old machine. Her headache had changed from headache from Hades to just pressure behind her eyes. The room had also stopped spinning. He looked over at her. She smiled at him, Jenkins returned the smile continued with the machine. Suddenly the back door burst open and the others came in very excited that they had solved the case. She listened aptly as they reveled in their victory. Unaware how Stone's eyes never left hers. When Baird and Jones cleared out, Cassandra popped in her ear buds back in and sipped her tea. A small smile graced her pale features. She stared at her notebook and scribbled in her notebook. Jacob sat next to her and tapped her shoulder.

"Hey you okay?" Jake asked as Cassandra popped out her ear buds and looked at him.

"Oh yeah didn't feel like going out today." Cassandra answered suddenly ashamed to say it out loud.

"What's wrong Cassie?" Jake asked

"I get headaches" Cassie said

"Okay?" Jake responded

"Headaches that remind me that I have a tumor in my brain. Most days I don't even realize it and then on days like today. It's very clear that I have a death sentence ticking away in my brain. So on days like today, I usually stay at home and watch copious happy ending movies. Then crawl back into bed and sleep fitfully. Then the next day I have a twinge and bloody noses and the world shifts and I can pretend I get a happy ending." Cassie said with tears in her eyes.

"Hey, the ending isn't the end goal. It's the moments that lead up to the ending. You know that Darlin'." Jake said.

"Some days especially headache days the happy endings are all I can cling to." Cassandra replied.

"Well then let's watch one right now." Jake grabbed her wrist and led her to the theatre room and had Cassandra sit down on one of the couches grabbed a blanket. He sat down and pulled her close and started the colorful cartoon. Cassandra watch aptly and Jake watched her reactions. But soon found himself lost in the story and the characters. After a while He glanced down at Cassie. She was sound asleep. Jake smiled and kissed her forehead. He was hoping that a sound sleep would chase away the headache for a few days.