Chapter 4: The Hospital Room
I left Miles with Grandma Doris next door and got into Patricia’s car. She drove through the rain in silence until I finally asked where we were going.
“The hospital,” she said.
Cold dread moved through my chest. Patricia parked crooked, which scared me more than anything. She was the kind of woman who silently judged other people’s parking.
Inside, she led me through antiseptic-smelling corridors and stopped outside one room. Her hand shook on the handle.
“Laurel,” she whispered. “I’m sorry.”
Then she opened the door.
Luke was in the bed, but at first I barely recognized him. He was painfully thin. His hair was gone. Machines blinked beside him in slow, quiet rhythms. Then he shifted, and I knew the shape of his mouth… Continue Reading ⬇️
