*****
The next morning, her mother noticed. The older woman sat at the kitchen table, her eyes sharp as Emery barely touched her food.
“You’ve been pale for weeks,” her mother said firmly.
“And you keep holding your stomach. Enough of this nonsense. We’re going to the hospital today.”
Emery’s spoon clattered against her plate. Panic rushed through her chest. “No—Mom, it’s nothing. Just stress, I...”
“Don’t you dare argue with me.” Her mother’s voice was iron. “You fainted two days ago. And now you look like death warmed over. I will not sit here and watch my daughter waste away.”
Emery’s hands shook under the table. I can’t let her find out. I can’t…
But she couldn’t fight her mother’s resolve.
.......
At the hospital, the sterile scent of disinfectant made her stomach twist. Sitt
