Penny nodded. She supposed her mother had already drawn up a schedule of the shifts she would give people who wanted to hang around a hospital for a while with a sick girl. It always started out long and then as time went on, they started losing more and more volunteers. The same feeling that crept over her when she was with Annie suddenly returned, that people had lives and they didn't need to spend all their time sulking around a hospital. "Yeah maybe." She didn't think it was going to be much longer, but she also knew not to plan that far ahead.
I don't really want you to take up where I left off or anything, she confessed, unless you want to. It's more of a... just keeping an eye on things and being careful. There is so much that's not right around here, and I needed someone to know. You're the only one that I really trust with this sort of sensitive information. And the fact that it's the last secret I have left is more than a little exposing. Not that I should be complaining about that right now.
It took her a minute to piece everything together. The random doctor's visit, the particular illness, the fact that he was all clean. "Wow." Yes, she said that out loud, because she was pretty much shocked at the idea. Sorry uhm... Yes, she also said 'uhm' in her head. Are you really projecting ideas into my head right now? She grinned a little though. "I am sorry. I didn't want you to get hurt. I never do." And she would have reached for his hand but she was conscious enough of the fact that he would lose their mental link if she did.