Page 360 of Eternal
“Mama?” My voice is a whisper. “Mama, please.”
Her lips are open, her eyes closed, but she’s not snoring.
She always snores when she sleeps.
I nudge her shoulder. It rolls, but she doesn’t wake up.
She’s breathing weird… Not like people breathe. “Wake up,” I whisper. “Wake up now, Mama. I’m scared.”Nothing. “Please get up. Please. I don’t wanna play anymore.Please.”
I touch her hand but it’s heavy and wet. Her face is all sweaty too.
“Mama wake up. It’s not funny. I’ll be good, okay? I promise.”
I try pulling her, but she doesn’t move.
I back away, my stomach hurts. I run to the kitchen, and grab the phone. My hands aren’t working right. I press the wrong numbers and drop it. I scream and pick it up again then press Alexei’s number.
“Solnyshko?”
My voice cracks when I hear his voice. “She’s not waking up. She fell. There’s glass. She’s not moving. There’s stuff and and and… I don’t know what to do.. She’s on the floor. I think she’s dead. I think she broke.”
His voice goes tight. “Listen to me baby, calm down. She’s not dead. Is she breathing?”
“I don’t know. She’s on the floor and there’s water and the flowers are dead and she’s not moving.”
“It’s going to be okay. I’m going to call an ambulance. I’m calling them right now. But you have to stay with her, okay? You have to talk to her. Okay? Talk to her.”
“I’m scared.”
“I know,solnyshko. I know. But you’re the bravest girl I know. Stay on the phone. Stay with her.”
I drop the phone but kept it on speaker and then I crawl back next to her.
I hold Sunny in one hand and Mama’s fingers in the other. “You gotta wake up now,” I whisper. “You’re scaring me too much.”
No answer.
“Remember when you gave me Sunny? You said he’d keep me safe when you couldn’t. He’s still here. I’m still here. You have to wake up. You have to say something.”
Her hand twitches.
I grab it immediately. “Mama?”
She mumbles. Then nothing again. Then sirens. Then people.
They break the door. I scream. I think I scream really loud. They’re strangers in big vests and heavy boots. I show them where she is.
They roll her onto her back. One of them shines light in her eyes. “She’s out,” he says. “Possible overdose.”
I keep holding her hand until they pull me away. Then I scream even more and cry too.
“Don’t take her!! She’s still my mom! She’s still mine!”
They say other words too, but I don’t know them. Then they pull me aside, one of them kneels in front of me and pats my head kindly. “You did really good, sweetheart. You saved her.”
I didn’t save her.
She’s still not awake but I stop crying. I hold Sunny so tight I think I hear the seams rip.
