Her voice bursts through the phone, with an infectious happiness. "Nadine is finally out of her coma!" she exclaims, her enthusiasm making a smile tug at the corner of my lips.

"I'll be right there," I respond, already imagining the moment I'll see Nadine.

I feel jealous and wish I could have been the first person she saw. I should have stayed by her side, not come home to freshen up. I push the thought aside, chiding myself for being selfish.

As I rise from the couch, my body aches from the impact of two weeks of hospital vigils. I hadn't planned to sleep that long, but exhaustion got the...