[WARNING! Unedited! Don't Buy!]
[EVE]
I carried the morning's calm with me through the day, though a thousand thoughts sought to break in. The ultrasound envelope shook in my bag, a quiet reminder of the secret nestled within me. I passed through the living room, where my brothers argued over video games, and paused by my parents' older photos—evidence of their own beginnings, promises made at younger ages, with fatter dreams and scarcer resources. It gave me courage.
"Mom," I said over lunch, voice barely above a whisper. She looked up, spoon halfway to her lips in the soup bowl. "Can we talk later?"
Her eyebrows lifted, concern flashing briefly across her face before it smoothed into gentle reassurance. "Of course, sweetie."
