Kept Promises

Harper’s death from a genetic disorder completely broke Oakley. She’d been unable to go on with her life. Her unbearable pain and grief had left her unable to go on with her life. She’d let herself wallow in her unbearable pain. She’d tried talking about it with friends. Nobody genuinely understood what she was going through though. It was a rare genetic disorder after all. Most Medical Professionals didn’t even know much about it. A disease primarily seen in textbooks but not in real life. A disease hard to diagnose because of it affecting the entire body in some way. 

Oakley had fallen into a deep depression after losing Harper. A time of grieving she was trying to move through. She’d shut down. She’d shut everyone out knowing they’d not understand anyway. She’d been open about grief not being linear. That there was no time frame on grieving. That she’d be grieving Harper’s death for the rest of her life. She became blunt at times during conversations. That nobody she knew would genuinely understand her grief because of not losing someone to MELAS Syndrome like she had. It was a dual grief. Their mother had died of the same thing fifteen years prior to Harper’s death. They just hadn’t known what it was at the time. People distanced themselves after a while. They’d done all they could to help her through Harper's death. To them, Oakley didn’t want the help so why bother trying. She did want their help. Unbeknownst to them. She was just unwilling to ask knowing they’d not understand anyway. 

“It’s okay to go on ya know” Jude mentioned 
“Yeah, I know. I’m allowed to grieve. It’s not linear. Losing her broke me in ways I can’t describe” Oakley replied
“I’ve lost a sibling also. I’ve-” he began
“Not lost a sibling like I have. MELAS isn’t like losing other people. I’ve nobody that understands. It’s not like Cancer, Mental Health issues or anything else that’s widely known and has support systems. There’s far more support systems in place for those than for something like what I’m going through” Oakley retorted 

Harper had kept her promise. She’d haunted Oakley. She’d made herself known days after her death. The Celebration Of Life hadn’t yet happened.  It was just Harper being annoying in Oakley's eyes. It was oddly comforting to Oakley. It was Harper’s way of letting Oakley know she was okay. That she’d always be around in some way. That she was still around with the only difference being she no longer had a physical body. Harper had come to Oakley in her dreams. She’d let Oakley know she hadn’t suffered. She’d gone peacefully. She was going on adventures of her own since her death. That it was okay to go on with her life. She was still around in her own way. Their conversations turned serious at times. Conversations about their day. A sense of normalcy for Oakley. 

Oakley kept her promise to Harper. She’d let go of the unbearable grief and pain. Unbearable grief and pain she’d let herself wallow in. Harper had kept all of her promises after all. She’d made herself known nearly every day since her death. That she was still around. She wasn’t going anywhere. She was still very much part of Oakleys life. It just looked differently. People had been uncomfortable with Oakley talking about it. She didn’t care. It was an everyday part of her life. She’d begun normalizing it. That it was her sister after all. Harper was dead set on annoying Oakley in death like she had in life.  

“I’m proud of you” Jude said
“Thanks” Oakley replied
“I’ve not seen you this happy in a long time” Riley chimed in
“I haven’t been happy in a long time being why. Harper keeping all of her promises has helped. It’s about time I keep all of my promises” Oakley answers 
“You’ve done far more than that though” Oliver said
“Yeah, I know. I’d rather raise awareness than keep silent. Only way people will know about it is by people like me speaking up. There’s nowhere near enough awareness about it. I’m using my voice to share their story” Oakley said

Oakley had gone on with her life. She’d become a Public Speaker. She shared her story far more than before. She hadn’t been entirely comfortable becoming a Public Speaker. She knew it was worth it. She knew it would reach people. Her main focus being on Medical Professionals. To bring awareness to MELAS. To show there are people out there that have it. That it looks different for everyone like any other disease. Her mother had dropped dead while Harper declined over six months. To hopefully diagnose other people over time. To hopefully have more research done on it