Page 104 of Enzo

Deafening silence ensued—unbearable and endless.

Until Mama’s sob shattered through the air. “She’s gone.”

The words crashed into my soul like thunder. The walls started to close in. My vision blurred.

A set of warm, familiar hands wrapped around me, but I couldn’t move.

“…can’t be…”

“…has to be a mistake…”

I couldn’t distinguish the voices from the ringing in my ears. I stared at the small bouquet of flowers in the center of the table.

Amara loves flowers.I swallowed.Loved.

I closed my eyes, my soul splintering into a thousand little pieces.

My breaths came in choppy and my heart pounded violently, drumming against my ribs like a desperate plea to bring her back.

My hands trembled as I clutched the tablecloth like a lifeline.

“We should have stayed,” I choked out. “We should havestayed. We should have stayed!”

She died all alone.

A scream tore from my throat and I buried my head in Enzo’s chest. His palm moved up and down on my back, murmuring words I wasn’t able to process because my own drowned them out.

“She died all alone,” I rasped.

40

PENELOPE

Iwas walking through my parents’ house, drowning in my own grief, when the phone in my hand buzzed. Then it buzzed again, and again. I glanced at the screen, noting the group chat was littered with broken heart and sad face emojis.

Amara: I’m so sorry, Pen. Tell us what you need. Want us to come ahead of the funeral? Anything you need, just say it. We’re here.

Skye: Amara will live forever in your and our hearts.

Hannah: We love you.

Arianna: You’re not alone. Amara will forever be a part of us.

Hannah: Hang in there, cuz.

My fingers trembled as I typed a reply.

Me: Thank you. I just can’t believe she’s gone. I keep expecting to see her.

Hannah: I wish… Gosh, I wish I’d been a match.

We all did, I thought sadly. It was one of the cruelties thrown into our lives when we learned none of us was a match.

Anya: I know this is cliché, but she’s in a better place. No more suffering. We love you, Pen.

Arianna: Yes, we love you, cuz.

Hannah: We’ll miss her forever, but she’d want you to live, Pen. Don’t let her down and dwell on the pain and bad things.