It had been a cold, rainy day when she had sat in the sterile hospital lobby, her fingers pressed into her temples, trying to hold it all together. The waiting room was filled with the quiet murmur of voices, the clinking of metal trays, and the rhythmic beeping of machines. But to Anna, it all felt distant, like she was underwater, drowning in her own helplessness. Lilly’s condition had worsened. The treatments were only temporary, the bills were mounting, and she had no way to pay for what was needed next. Desperation clawed at her insides, a suffocating knot that wouldn’t let go.
She wasn’t sure how much longer she could keep up the facade of calm. She kept telling herself she had to stay strong, for Lilly. But each day that passed without a solution felt like a countdown, ticking down
