Chapter 16 (i)

I was discharged from the hospital two days later and returned to the care of my mother. The doctor and nurses had had their reservations but there was little any of them could do. It was a song and dance that had gone on longer than any of them could imagine, one that wouldn’t be easily disrupted by newcomers to the stage.

I lay in bed staring up at the ceiling, willing the hours to pass quickly so it would be morning and I would be able to return to school. After such a long absence, I found myself missing the droning voice of my history teacher and the unpleasant screech of the PA system before the morning announcements. No doubt, I’d missed out on many assignments as well and was eager to dive into them. The distraction would be good; it would spirit me away from the lingering threads of shame that r