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Story: The Glittering Edge

Penny

“MOM?”

Penny keeps expecting her to answer. She saw Anita a few minutes ago. She can still hear her voice, and she can’t reconcile that with what she’s seeing.

Her mom is in the hospital bed. Around her, all the monitors are dark, and she’s no longer connected to the IVs and wires. Her chest isn’t rising and falling and the color in her cheeks is gone.

“Oh my god, no,” Naomi mutters, her voice cracking.

Penny steps into the room. Alonso and Corey are close behind her, but they’re barely real. Nothing is real except the fact that her mom is gone.

Penny falls to her knees.