Emma

That night, I toss and turn on my bed, unable to escape the whirlwind of thoughts spinning in my head. 

The mattress creaks softly beneath me with every restless shift, but no position brings comfort. 

My mind replays the same painful memories, the faded name in the book, my mother’s cold words about the man who left us, the heavy loneliness that settled in my chest and refuses to leave. 

Sleep stays out of reach, teasing me.

A gnawing hunger pulls at me. I realize I haven’t eaten anything since early this morning. The emptiness in my stomach shows the one deep inside me. 

But this one, I can...