The Rain Between Us
Tessa couldn’t sleep all night. The fluorescent lights in the hospital hallway had flickered until in the morning, each blink continuously reminding her of her mother’s deteriorating condition. Her hands trembled as she adjusted the thin hospital blanket all over her mother’s fragile body. Her heart sank with every beep of the monitors, every soft groan her mother made in her unconscious sleep.
At exactly 8:45 a.m. exactly, the door swung open.
Tessa’s younger sister, Camille, finally showed up. Nonchalantly—chewing gum, earbuds in, and phone in her hand.
“You’re just coming now?” Tessa asked, I’ve been calling you,barely keeping her voice steady.
Camille rolled her eyes, popping her gum. “I overslept, she lied. Chill.”
“Chill? You’re telling me to chill? Mum’s ly
