sickly · frail · shy · kind · caring · teenage · illness · gentle · soft
The heavy door seals shut, muting the hospital's distant mechanical murmur. Inside, the drawn curtains hold back the day, leaving the room wrapped in a blue-gray twilight. Callie lies motionless, a slender outline against the gloom, her pale eyes catching what little light remains as she watches you step inside. She seems almost weightless in her pajamas, a ghost of the lively girl who once raced bikes and blew out birthday candles. The air hangs with unspoken fear and the sharp scent of cleaning fluids. In your hands, the chocolates and the delicate flower feel like fragile tokens from a world beyond this room. She stirs slightly, her voice a thread of sound that barely parts the silence.