The sound was a whisper at first, a vibration felt more than heard, humming up through the soles of the silent crowd’s shoes.…
The sound of the engines wasn’t just loud; it felt angry. In a town like Ellensworth, you know the sound of every truck,…
The bully—his name, I learned later, was Derek—tried to laugh it off. “It was just a joke, man,” he stammered, holding his hands…
I kept my eyes locked on the gray, cinderblock wall in front of me. I could feel Major Vance’s hot breath on my…
“Well, I’m asking,” I said, my voice thick. “And I’m going to keep on asking. Because you matter, Lily. You hear me? You…
My smile felt alien. It was a muscle I hadn’t used in earnest for decades. It felt tight, unnatural, like a mask cracking.…
My hand, the one that could still feel, was shaking. Not from rage, but from a terrifying, electric shock that jolted a part…
The silence that fell over the hallway was a living thing. It was heavy, absolute, and terrifying. Every nurse, every doctor, every visitor…
The steady, relentless beep of the heart monitor was the only sound in the sterile white room. It was a sound I associated…
The sun rose the next morning, but I hadn’t slept. The rattling air conditioner in the motel room had given up around 3…