“We first met in April 2011 at the Youth Thalassemia Association. Both of us are Thalassemia major patients, so every meet we would bump into each other and learn a little bit more about one another. Through these meetings we became friends, more so because our problems and insecurities were so similar — for one, the both of us had given up on the idea of love. Our condition is such that we have to get blood transfusions every 15 days and a ‘long and happy life’ is a very distant dream.

As time passed and we let each other into our lives, I realised that I was in love with her. She filled a void in my life that I didn’t even know existed before we met— and I knew that whatever little time I have here, I wanted it to be with her. On her birthday, I purposely didn’t wish her. Instead, in the afternoon I casually called her up and asked her to meet me at a place where I told her my friends and I were hanging out. When she came to see me, she realised no one else was there and I had forgotten all about her birthday. Just when she was about to leave I handed her a little box and when she opened it she wanted to kill me. It had a huge capsicum in it, which she’s allergic to — but then I opened it and inside was a beautiful pendant set for her… and she was so happy, it made everything worth it. Through everything our parents were so supportive of our relationship and our treatments that it made us less stressed about what the future held for us.

In a few years we were married, obviously knowing that we will never be able to have children of our own, but she’s enough for me. We still date — we go out for dinners, movies and now even our blood transfusions together. We’re both aware that we may not have a lot of time in our lives, but we don’t worry about that too much. How does the length of life matter, if everyday you feel so happy that you wouldn’t even mind if it was your last day here?”

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