Page 4 of After All This Time

She whips her head around and back. “What?”

“This is so good.”

“You scared the crap out of me.”

“I think you missed your calling to go to culinary school.”

“Right. Be sure to tell my mom that. Back in high school, she looked like she was going to pass out when I told her I wanted to write about fashion and beauty, so I could add some experience to my résumé. I thought she was going to have a heart attack when I told her I wanted to do this for the rest of my life.”

A breathy laugh escapes my mouth. “Yeah, I remember that. And for the record, you’re going to be the best digital news journalist the industry has ever seen. They have no idea what’s coming,” I reply, cracking a smile.

She purses her lips together just enough to make a small frown combined with a smile appear on her face.

I believe in her, even if she doesn’t believe in herself. She doesn’t realize how strong and incredible she is, and I will spend every day for the rest of our lives reminding her.

Suddenly, my phone rings. The caller I.D. flashes Mom in bold letters with a picture of me and her on the front.

"Hey, Mom, what's up?" I answer.

"Hi, Sweet Girl. What are you up to this morning?"

"I’m just having breakfast with Bella.”

“Good. That’s good.” Her voice comes out in a hushed tone, barely a whisper.

There’s a long pause which is starting to make me nervous.

“Is everything okay?” I glance at Bella, who’s pausing mid-bite and watching me closely.

There’s a heartbeat of silence before she responds. “Dani, there's been an accident.”

I freeze as the room stills around me. “What?”

“There’s been an accident, and it’s really bad.”

My grip on the phone tightens as my breathing gets heavier. "Mom, what do you mean by an accident?”

“Ben and Lizzie Kaplan got into a car accident earlier this morning. I’m at the hospital with Laura.”

The next words she says have me in complete shock. And suddenly, everything around me begins to fade.

I shake my head violently from side to side.

This can’t be happening. Not again. This isn’t real. No, no, no.

I look down and notice the breakfast Bella spent so much time making is now all over the floor and the table.

Everything around me is suffocating, sticky, and puffy.

Oh God, I can’t breathe.

It’s like middle school all over again.

My breath comes out in short, ragged gasps, each inhale feels like the air is getting sucked right out of me.

“Dani, what’s going on?” Bella asks beside me, her face concerned and worried.

I feel like I’m going to cry, but the tears are at a standstill.