David Carles (DC) and Mark Carles (MC)
DC: When we first found out, the doctor said, “He has two to three months left.” And I know you love your brother but there’s nothing we can do.” And I just remember, the whole room went black.
MC: Since being diagnosed, I had a massive surgery. 16 hours. 17 pints of blood.
DC: Mm-hm.
MC: And, um…we didn’t know I was going to live.
DC: But then you woke up. And the only way for you to communicate was through sign language.
MC: Yeah.
DC: The first thing that you signed was my name…which was tough but it meant everything to me.
MC: Thank goodness you taught it to me.
DC: Yeah.
MC: I write down now, all the time, “If I was going to die tomorrow, what am I gonna do today?” And, um…I’d want to spend as much time with you as possible. So that’s the most important thing.
DC: I’m trying to milk out every ounce of Mark that I can.
MC: You’re stockpiling.
DC: Yeah. You know, I’ve been on multiple dates in the last year. And in my Tinder profile, it says, ”Down for a good time and my brother is my sidekick and he will also come out on the dates as well.”
I say you make the date ten times better and you also pay sometimes too, where you…
MC: Yeah. I’m a good date…
DC: You are a very good date.
MC: But they must think you’re real strange.
DC: I’ve got a few different messages that said, “Hey, is your brother in on it too?” Maybe they think that it’s like a package deal.
MC: Well, it is a package deal. But it’s a different…different kind of package.
DC: Right. Exactly. A different kind of package. Yeah.
MC: [Laughs.]
DC: Some understand and, and some don’t and you know, the ones that don’t…there is no second date.
MC: Before getting diagnosed, you know, I was dating girls. But it’s tougher now ‘cause, you know, they’re attracted to, like, a future. Plus, post-surgery…I woke up with all these scars.
DC: You will find the right girl who will say, “Hey…that scar is, you know…”
MC: Kind of hot?
DC: Kind of hot and the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.
MC: Okay.
DC: You will find that. Um, you know, hopefully within the next few weeks.
MC: Yeah.
DC: And I would like to get matching tattoo scars with you. I…
MC: You wanna get the cross on your stomach?
DC: I want to get the cross on the stomach, I want to get the little slit on the neck.
Every day I wish, you know, we can reverse and, and switch roles…but there’s absolutely nothing I can do and it eats at me every single day.
MC: I have to carry the cancer but you have to carry me. And I’m so envious of Grandpa, who died at 102.
DC: Yeah. We don’t know how much time we have left together. But I’m very happy with the 20 plus years we’ve had of being brothers.
MC: We’re in this together.
DC: We are, no matter what.
