The morning sun filtered gently through the curtains of Alliah’s bedroom, touching her pale face with warmth. She blinked slowly, feeling the stiffness in her body after nearly a week of immobility. Her wound was still tender, the scar on her abdomen a raw reminder of the ordeal she had endured. But today, she felt something she hadn’t felt in a long time—curiosity. A quiet eagerness to experience the day beyond the confines of her room, beyond the pain and fear that had accompanied her every moment since surgery.
Joshua, her seven-year-old son, lay beside her, carefully clutching his favorite pillow between them. His small frame seemed taller than usual in the morning light, and his dark eyes, filled with concern, never left hers.
“Good morning, Mommy,” he whispered, brushing a strand o
