would only worsen her health. She
needs to have hope. That is the only way she
will survive , she thought.
“Mom?”
“Yes?”
“Will you brush my hair?”
Christine nodded. “Sure.”
She reached for Katie’s hairbrush as
Katie sat up in her bed. She began stroking her
long and brown hair with the soft bristles. As
she sang a tune, Katie joined in.
Her hair began falling out in clumps between her fingers. Her eyes got wide, and her
hands shook. She dropped the brush on the bed.
In a desperate attempt to fix the new bald spot,
she patted down Katie’s hair. But as she attempted to use Katie’s remaining hair, it fell out
as well.
Katie, confused turned her head to her
mother’s speechless expression. “Why did you
stop?”
She peered down at her mother’s trembling hands. She shrieked in terror at the sight.
“My hair! Mom?”
Christine struggled to find the right
words. She knew it wasn’t her fault. There
wasn’t anything she could do to fix it. “I-I’m
so…ry.”
Tears rolled down her cheeks. Through
the watery gaze, she watched as Katie carefully
ran her fingers through her hair. It continued to
fall out of place, making Katie sob uncontrollably. “M-mommy. H-help me. M-make it stop!”
Christine backed away. Shock ran
through her, making her numb to the core with
depression. She didn’t know what else to do. Or
if anything, she does could help. However, leaving her daughter alone made her only feel
worse. She was scared. Ashamed at herself for
not being a better mother.
She crouched in the kitchen, leaning
her back against the stove. She buried her face
in her knees, muffling her pleas. “God! Please,
no! She is my baby girl, my only baby. Please!
Help her! Take my life, not hers.”
She felt helpless in her prayers. Shivering from an overreaction of nerves, she listened
to the winds from outside. The leaves are dying,
and within their place grows a new life , she
thought. Strangely, this gave her hope that
someday, Katie will not change, but a new life
will be given to her. One that cannot be taken
away, or end like this. At least let her have a
new life , she wished.
Chapter 5
An alarm went off, just after dawn.
Nick’s eyes gloomed over as they darted
towards the black clock beside his bed. He realized the time, wondering how it could be so late
in the morning. Confusion pounded within his
head, as he attempted to count the number of
drinks he had the night before. He rubbed his
tiresome eyes, fighting the urge to plop back
down into his bed.
Flashes of the night before played inside his head like a movie. His eyes shot open,
feeling his heart race against his chest. He
groped his neck, checking his fingers for any
signs of crimson streaks. His skin, soft to the
touch, calmed his rapid breathing.
A strange, yet familiar, perfume caught
his nose. “Jasmine , ” he whispered.
Seconds later a light tap sounded on his
door. He paused from lifting out of bed, and listened as the tap echoed inside his ears once
more. He wrapped his blanket around his waist,
rubbing his temples. Stop knocking!
A woman’s voice muffled through the
apartment door. “Nick, are you up? I think we
need to talk about last night.”
“Ah, fuck. Lucy,” he mumbled to himself. The last thing he wanted to do was to talk
to her about their brawl they had after work. He
tried everything to forget it.
Lucy helped herself in. “Hey, did you
know your door was unlocked?”
Before he could answer, she intruded
into his bedroom. He said, “You could have
waited for me to let you in.”
“Sorry,” she said while shrugging her
shoulders.
“What do you want?”
She sighed, pacing his room. She
opened her mouth to speak, but stopped. She
bent over to his floor retrieving a pink cap. Her
eyes narrowed. “You’re using again, aren’t you?”
He wiped his face with his palm. “What
the hell are you talking about?”
“There is a cap to a needle in your
room.”
“WH-what? No. I’m not using. Haven’t
for six