Chapter 11
352 Words
She just needed to pretend she was busy, to distract from the fact that her hands were trembling all over the place. Stop it, Kira told herself, squeezing the edge of the desk. Kira, just breathe.
She took a deep breath in, and then slowly let it out, trying to calm down. She did it again, feeling her shoulders relax a bit. As she breathed, the words on the page started to come into focus, and the room stopped spinning.
Kira still had a ways to go, but for the first time in a while, she felt like she could handle it. The panic was starting to fade away, replaced by a sense of determination. I'm not done yet, not by a long shot. Kira said.
Just then, her phone buzzed and her heart dropped. She looked at the screen and saw that it was Maya calling. She got a sense of relief for a second. She hesitated, wondering if she should answer.
Kira picked up the call, Hello baby girl," Maya said, her voice flame and strong. Mm, I'm just do ... .ing great, Maya figured out something was wrong. "Hey, I just wanted to see how you're doing," Maya said,
Her voice is warm and comforting. Kira tried to sound okay, but it was clear she wasn't. "I'm doing just…..fine," she said, forcing a smile even though Maya couldn't see her.
But Maya wasn't buying it. "No, you're not," she said gently. "You don't sound fine, Kira. What's going on? Talk to me." Kira felt a lump form in her throat as she struggled to hold it together.
She took a deep breath and let it all out. "It's my mom... She needs dialysis, and it's really serious. If she doesn't see the doctor today, it could get worse." Maya listened quietly, letting Kira get it all out.
"I lost my job, Maya. I'm in this crazy situation with this stranger and I don't know how to fix it. I don't have any money, I have nothing right now." The words tumbled out of her mouth in a desperate rush.
- Writer
