I have to leave before he gets back, before he notices anything.
She protests when I pull the phone away, trying to grab it as I move out of reach as quickly as possible.
“No!” she shrieks at me. “Please, I need to see more, I need to—”
“Hush!” I place my finger on my lips, begging her to quiet down. “Please. Don’t tell him!”
Her face has lost all color as she stares at me with disbelieving terror, shaking her head while her eyes glimmer with tears.
It gets to me. Her pain has always gotten to me, stabbing me right in the heart as if it was my own.
But it has never been as bad as now, in this very moment.
“I’m sorry,” I utter, my voice breaking as I’m overcome with my own urge for tears. “I can’t do more.”
She calls after me again when I turn my back to her, doing the best thing I can do for her right now.
Leave the room.