Emergency Room

I paced back and forth outside the emergency room. I couldn’t think straight, chewing at my nails as I tracked the wall clock. Every second felt like an eternity. I struggled to breathe, my heart pounding with the terrifying weight of what I might find out. Nurses walking past told me to calm down and take a seat, but I couldn’t. How could I, when Ethan was inside that room fighting for his life? Eventually, I stopped, frozen in place. My knees felt weak, and my feet were numb from hours of standing. I needed to sit, but I knew I’d just stand right back up—my body was too wired to rest. I closed my eyes and prayed silently, calling on every saint to help him. I knew the world saw him as a vile, sinful creature—a destructive human—but I knew he still had a heart and a soul. I knew his light was still there, even if it was locked behind thick walls. I didn’t know what I would do if I lost him. A single tear fell, tracing a path down to my chin. I took a shaky breath, tr