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The Test

Author: Siwa Rose
last update Last Updated: 2024-10-05 07:30:48

Damien Shaw

I volunteer to be tested first. It’s the only thing I know how to do in this moment, the only thing that makes sense.

“We’ll both do it,” I say, glancing at Imogene.

She’s now quiet again I feel this ache in my chest because I don’t know how to fix this. I’ve always been able to fix things for us before, but this? This is beyond anything I can control.

The drive to the lab is a blur. We’re accompanied by one of doctor Whitman’s specialists. Imogene is quiet, staring out the window like she’s always doing. I keep my hand on her thigh, squeezing it every now and then, but she doesn’t react. I’m terrified of what’s going through her head, of the distance growing between us, even though I know it’s not me she’s pulling away from — it’s the weight of all this.

When we get to the lab, the smell of antiseptic hits me hard, and I hate it. I hate that this is our reality now, that this is where we have to be because our daughter is sick. I glance at Imogene again as they l
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