She was a silent fighter with a demon in her lung,
that stole her breaths right from her before they'd
hardly passed her tongue.

He was a silent fighter, who was always taught to
share, and held his breath when he was with her,
just so she could have his air.

━━━━━ Erin Hanson

For Gwendolyn Peterson, every single day was a fight.

Her life was a series of hospital visits, relying on medication, and needing to carry around a portable oxygen tank. It was normal for Gwen and as far as she knew, that was the way it had always been. At the age of four, Gwen was diagnosed with a chronic illness called cystic fibrosis and she can barely remember a time where she didn't have to take pancreatic enzymes to help with digestion or a life without spending weeks sometimes months in the hospital after a bad flare up.

She hardly remembered a life where she didn't have a constant build up of extra mucus in her lungs or the constant need to cough in order to clear it. Gwen had no idea what it was like to live without cystic fibrosis. Gwen hadn't really understood what it meant, having been diagnosed at such a young age. After that moment, monthly hospital visits to check her lung, liver, and pancreatic function became routine. The use of a nebulizer every single night and an airway clearance vest became something she depended on. It was a normal part of her life.

At the age of fourteen, Gwen had to start using an oxygen tank to help her lung function. The amount of time she spent in the hospital seemed to subside. Receiving treatment was easing her symptoms and although she had to constantly have a nasal cannula attached to her nose, Gwen wasn't bothered by it. She had gotten used to the feeling and sometimes, she felt bare without it. The times where her doctor assured her that it would be okay to take it off for a few hours made her as if there were a part of her missing.

When Gwen turned sixteen, her doctor suggested that she start engaging in more physical activity. Her symptoms were doing a lot better and with the help of her oxygen tank and portable oxygen concentrator that she carried around in a backpack, her lung function had significantly improved. Gwen tried several different activities, but none of them seemed to stick. She was struggling to find something that she enjoyed. She tried tennis, but that had been boring and she felt miserable the entire time. Then, she tried to take up swimming but she hated the way the water felt against her skin and pools had always made her feel uncomfortable, so she quit that even faster than she had tennis.

It wasn't until Gwen moved into a new apartment complex with her mother that she finally found an activity that she thought she could actually enjoy. After meeting the strange and unusual duo that was Miguel Diaz and Johnny Lawrence, Gwen joins karate. From there, Gwen finds herself wrapped up in a whirlwind of drama that she never would have thought possible.

Gwen's life was about to be turned upside down for better and for worse.

Gwendolyn "Gwen" Peterson.
❛ I never give up. No matter what. ❜

❛ THE FIGHTER.❜

also starring.
mandy moore...........alice peterson

notes.
so i unpublished this fic back in 2021 due to losing the motivation for it but i decided to bring it back because i miss writing gwen's story. and now that i'm more comfortable in my writing, i wanted to give this fic another shot.

i know quite a bit of information about cystic fibrosis because members of my family have it. i've done a lot of research about it as well and will continue to do more so that everything i write is as accurate as possible.

also karate is actually a great physical activity for individuals with cf to participate in.

i'm excited to continue to write gwen's story and hope that i can do her story justice.

dedications.
janiabeans tangledkisses faerieribs hightxwers 90scrushculture where_the_fun_begins -lvestudio & anyone else who reads!

layout credit.
this layout belongs to Iavendergirl <3

warnings.
violence/fighting, strong language, underage drinking, descriptions of coughing, sickness/throwing up (i will put an additional warnings at the beginning of chapters with this in them), and sexual themes.