NATALIA
The steady beeping sound pulled me out of a deep, dark place. My eyes fluttered open slowly, and the bright white lights above me made me squint. Everything felt heavy. My body ached, especially my left arm. I tried to move, but a sharp pain shot through me and made me gasp. I was in a hospital. The smell of clean sheets and medicine filled my nose. Machines hummed around me, and a thin tube ran into the back of my hand.
Slowly, the memories came back. The ice cream shop, the sweet taste on my tongue, Wesley’s smile across the small table. Then the loud bang, the sudden pain and people screaming, Wesley’s arms around me as everything went blurry. My heart started beating faster. Someone had shot at me.
I turned my head carefully and saw my father sitting in a chair beside the be
