It was a sinner's suicide for anyone to work at Coopers Incorporation. It was no surprise that people aimed to stray far from the Devil known as Mr Elijah Cooper.
Cold, demanding, and rough, he ruled over everything with an iron grip and a calculati...
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Nora's P.O.V
"Mom... I’m here."
My voice cracked, barely above a whisper, trembling as I clutched her frail hand. Her breathing was shallow, uneven—like every inhale was a battle she was slowly losing. The doctors hovered, their faces unreadable, their movements mechanical. I hated them for that.
Like this was just another patient. Just another day.
But to me, this was everything.
"Mom, you can't leave. Not yet. Not like this." My throat burned, words breaking apart as I forced them out. "Nina and I... we need you. Please—just hold on."
But I didn’t even know if she could hear me anymore.
The heart monitor beeped wildly, erratic, frantic—before it slowed. Steady. Too steady.
I gripped her hand tighter, as if holding on to her physically could keep her here with me. But deep down, I knew.
I was losing her.
Jane and my grandmother stood behind me, their quiet sobs filling the sterile hospital air. Their pain mirrored mine, but no one’s grief could compare to what I felt.
Because I didn’t just love my mother.
I needed her.
Flashback
"Mom, why did you do that?" I had pouted at her, arms crossed. "I know you wanted to go."
She turned toward me, that warm, familiar smile stretching across her face—the one that always made me feel safe. Home.
"It’s okay, sweetheart," she had said softly. "I can go another time. You should go. Have fun. Don’t worry about me."
But I did worry.
Because I knew her.
I knew how much she had wanted to go to that soccer match, how excited she had been. But the moment she realized there was only one ticket, she gave it up—just like she always did.
She sacrificed for me without hesitation.
And that day, I had thrown my arms around her, burying my face in her shoulder. "You’re the best mom in the world," I had whispered.
And she had laughed. That beautiful, soft, alive laugh.
End of Flashback
The heart monitor gave one long, final beep.
That sound. That awful, deafening sound that meant a heart had stopped beating.
That my mother’s heart had stopped beating.
"She’s gone."
The words left my lips, but they felt foreign, like they belonged to someone else. Like if I didn’t say them, they wouldn’t be real.
