“If It’s to Heal” by Brandann R. Hill-Mann at Page and Spine

This is my first ever published story, printed at Page and Spine in September of 2015.

He hung in about as long as he could, Nicole reasoned.
     Scott had never been the forever guy. She’d known this the moment he walked into that dive bar. It was the sort of place she never went to and he was the kind of guy who dripped charm and never gave her the time of day. He was all smile and bought-to-look-ragged shirts with a little too much product in his dark hair. He complimented her dress and tucked a strand of blonde hair out of her eyes, and she smiled genuinely, cheeks heating with a flush, and liked the attention. He’d been fun for a Friday night and weekend away. They’d enjoyed a good number of those before the infection.
     Kidney infections happened to her almost twice a year and usually a few antibiotics later everything was good to go. The most recent onset hardly seemed unusual, until it latched on stubbornly. The next thing she knew her schedule included dialysis twice a week and too many canceled plans for her friends to bother inviting her out anymore. Scott stuck out appointments and meetings with the endocrinologist, helping her write things down to remember later. He made it right up until the first kidney she thought she’d get slipped through her fingers.
     Too much reality for a Friday night.

You can read the rest here.