Daniel was officially cleared.
But innocence on paper did not erase the parents who had already whispered his name in the school parking lot.
“I can handle it,” he told me.
I knew he was lying.
After the first treatment cycle, Sophie’s nausea worsened. She slept most of the day and cried when strands of hair began collecting on her pillow.
Then Dr. Shah entered holding a laboratory report.
For the first time since we met her, she smiled before speaking.
“Sophie’s hCG has begun to fall.”
I looked at the page. The number was still far above normal.
“How much does that mean?”
“It means the tumor is responding.”
Sophie touched the bandage covering her IV.
“So the thing in my brain is getting weaker?”
“That is what we hope.”
She reached beneath her blanket and pulled out the stuffed rabbit.
“Then it should be scared.”
Daniel laughed softly. Eric turned toward the window and wiped his eyes.
