She is here now, at least. You feel that fury that has been engrained into your being since you were younger take a backseat for once. You try and let a different emotion settle in.

"Mama" you start. "I've missed you."

"Ah, yes, it has been some time, hasn't it?" she asks.

"Yeah. It has."

"Morel?" your Grandmother says weakly. "I haven't gone anywhere... how could you miss me..." she rests her head back against the pillow.

Your mother shakes her head. "Has she been calling you that this whole time?" You nod. "I see."

She stands, and pulls out her phone. In her cold, stoic voice, she continues: "This is something my father had once. She's going to need a blood transfusion, which I'll have to schedule now if I want to make it back in time for..."

"Mom" you interrupt. "What are you doing here?"

She looks at you, and you can't tell if she's upset, or if this is just how she looks. "A friend of your Grandmother's informed me that she's been missing her weekly Mahjong games. She seemed concerned, so I tried calling the home phone, then yours, and when no one picked up I decided to visit. Looks like my intuition was right."

She begins to dial on her phone again.

"I have to go now. I'll stop by the doctor's to schedule the appointment..."

>>Wait!