Part Twelve Stuarts taps Harry’s shoulder a few times and cries out to rejuvenate him, but there is no response. Finally, he grasps his phone on the bedside table to dial 911. “Hello, what’s your emergency?” a young woman says. “My friend Harry fell in our hotel room, and he will not come to,” Stuart ...

*Trigger warnings* Depression, Divorce, Death/loss, grief Suicide, Mental illness, violent content Reader discretion is advised *** The rest of the trip to the hospital was a complete blur to Micki. The stay in the intensive care unit, however, may as well have been a mere intense dream that Micki wished she would just wake up ...

*Trigger warnings* Depression, Divorce, Death/loss, griefSuicide, Mental illness, violent contentReader discretion is advised*** The welfare of Micki was starting to look slim and bleak for a young sixteen-year-old like herself. She heard ambulance staff trying to keep her alive. Her vision was a bit hazy and blurred, trying to open her eyes. How it is ...

*Trigger warnings* Depression, Divorce, Death/loss, griefSuicide, Mental illness, violent contentReader discretion is advised*** The cool forest atmosphere signified the arrival of dawn, the sun’s rays breaking through the pine tree branches. Birds chirped and greeted the upcoming dawn, evidence of a serene sanctuary of peace and harmony. A nearby hiker from the outside world would ...

Static fizzles gray all around me. The baby knows how to say “ssh.” I wish I could make it quiet. Days pass when it’s all I can hear. I see a leaf on the ground and it strikes me that he would have examined it. Pulled it apart. Turned it over to see what’s living ...

It had been a long night. I knew this day would come; there was no preparation for it. As we all stood around the hospital bed, holding hands, I saw a puff of smoke above me. I looked around at our family and friends. Their eyes closed. Was it inappropriate to shout out, “Hey, look ...

“And if I didn’t know betterI’d think you were talking to me nowIf I didn’t know betterI’d think you were still around.”—Marjorie, Taylor Swift In just a few days, I finish up the first phase of this new career. There will be a ceremony. You were supposed to be there. You were supposed to watch ...

Cancer: The word means nothing to most people. But to the people who have it, or those close to them, the word means everything.

If I had only known the last timeWould be the last timeI would have put off all the things I had to doI would have stayed a little longerHeld on a little tighterNow what I’d give for one more day with you ‘Cause there’s a wound here in my heartWhere something’s missingAnd they tell me ...

Part Eleven A gust of wind whips through the room and opens the antique book to page thirty-five. Stuart wipes the dust particles off the top of the page and begins to read. Arthur and I found the double agent drinking a cold beer and wearing purple and gold beads around his neck like he ...