Mallory finds herself brokenhearted when she loses the love of her life in a tragic accident. She's left to pick up the pieces of her life with the help of her best friend, Kendall. Her job as a neonatal nurse helps to keep her mind off of her broke...
I find breathing difficult, so I go to my Dad's car and lean against it. I place my face into my hands, desperately trying to take deep, even breaths to keep myself from hyperventilating.
When looking up, I feel a gentle hand on my shoulder.
"Mallory, are you okay?" I hear Ben's mother's voice.
"I wish people would stop asking me that. How could I possibly be okay?" I reply, trying to keep my attitude in check.
"I understand. I feel the same way. Are you taking a sedative, too? I begged my doctor for something to help me get through the worst day of my life," he says quietly.
"Yeah. I'm definitely with you there. My mom was able to get me a sedative. I'm afraid that it might not be working or at least not like I was hoping that it would," I honestly disclose.
She leans on the car beside me.
"It's not fair. Ben didn't deserve this; he spent his life helping people." My tone reveals my anger.
"I know, Mallory, I know. Those are the same things that keep running through my mind, too," she admits.
Tears well up in my eyes. "How do you make it through each day? I'm hanging on by a thread."
"I'm not doing well at all. It took everything inside of me to get out of bed to be here. We ended up not staying at your house. I couldn't even go inside," she confesses with tears of her own.
It's oddly comforting that someone else knows exactly how I feel. I lost the love of my life, but she lost her only child. I lean on her shoulder, and she puts her arm around me.
"It would help me if we could do this together. "She reaches her hand towards me, and I take it.
"Okay," I respond and she gives my hand a gentle squeeze.
"Come on, dear. We can do this." She leads me back inside.
If Ben's mother could find the strength to bury her son, I could get through today. We both go back inside the funeral home hand in hand.
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Ben's funeral was a week ago. I'm still staying with my parents. Their support has been tremendous. I didn't want to be alone, and I sure as hell was not ready to go back to the house that Ben and I shared. I've also been off work since the horrible day that I lost the love of my life.
My mother calls to me, "Mal, breakfast is ready."
"I'll be there in a minute, Mom." I pull my hair into a messy bun, dress in leggings and an oversized teeshirt, then head to the kitchen.
"Good morning, Sweetheart. How did you sleep?" my mother greets me.
The concern on her face is apparent. I haven't been sleeping well. Mom had recommended taking sleep aids, but as a nurse, I know how addictive prescription sleep aids are. The first couple of nights, I took Tylenol Simply Sleep. It did help me to fall asleep. Unfortunately, when I wake up during the night, that's it; sleep escapes me.
