Elena
Sleep had been nothing but a cruel joke.
Because every time I closed my eyes, I saw him, his face, his voice. That look when he'd said my name like I belonged to him.
Morning light crept through the curtains, casting a warm glow across my room. I sat on the edge of the bed and closed my eyes, hoping it would rid me of the memories. The house was silent, save for the faint hum of the vacuum cleaner and the sound of someone coughing down the hall.
Mum.
I exhaled and pushed myself up. I heard Sophie's laughter as I walked down the hall to my mother's room. Her door was slightly ajar, as it always is to let the air in. The nurse, a kind young woman named Beatrice, was already there. Her soft voice blended with the quiet chatter of medicine bottles as she was arranging my mother's be
