Chapter 4

"Jaqk, wake up!"

I wake to Monique bursting into our bedroom, her face drenched with tears. It takes me a minute to come around, but once I meet her worried eyes, I can't look away.

"What? What's going on?"

Monique starts to say something but doesn't manage any more than, "It's...it's happened again," before her legs buckle.

I leap of bed when she lands on her knees. I hoist her under her arms as her head falls limply on my chest. She sobs while I fruitlessly try to carry her to the bed.

When I give up (she’s not heavy; I’m just a weakling), I stroke her hair, doing my best to comfort her. We have a seat on the ground and embrace as she cries into my shoulder.