starter for @enzoadeluca tw: mention of hospitals/illness
The automatic doors slid open with a soft whoosh, and Elena didn’t hesitate. She burst through, the sharp scent of antiseptic and bleach slamming into her like a wave. Her heart pounded against her ribs, fierce and chaotic, each beat a frantic countdown. Her breath came in quick, ragged bursts, the cool air heavy with the faint hum of fluorescent lights and distant voices echoing off the sterile walls.
The hospital was a maze, cold and endless—and somewhere in it, her mother was alone, vulnerable. The thought was like a punch to her stomach, twisting tight with every step she took.
“Excuse me!” Elena’s voice cracked but carried as she surged forward, weaving through clusters of visitors and tired staff at the check-in desk. Her palms were clammy, trembling as she pushed the strands of hair back from her face. “I’m looking for my mom—Isabel Duarte. She’s been admitted—”
The nurse glanced up, cool and practiced. “Room number?”
“No, I don’t have it.” Elena’s words tumbled out in a rush, breath hitching. “I just got a call—my sister called me—Mom’s here because she fell or maybe she got lost outside, I don’t know. I was at work when I got the call. Please, can you tell me where she is?”
The nurse’s fingers hovered over the keyboard, hesitating, then typed. “Room 112, second floor, left wing. Elevator down the hall to your right.”
Elena’s fingers curled around a small stack of papers—texts printed out from her sister about their mom’s condition, notes from doctors, reminders she’d jotted down before rushing out the door. She barely registered them as she hurried, clutching them tight as her boots echoed down the hall.
Her mind raced through memories—her mom’s soft laugh, the slow retreat of her sharpness, the terror of losing her to confusion and fear.
And then, without warning, the world tipped sideways.
Elena crashed into someone, the impact jolting through her like a thunderclap. The papers burst from her grip, fluttering like wounded birds, tumbling to the floor around them.
Her breath caught as she looked up—
And saw him.
Enzo.
Time fractured. The hospital sounds faded, replaced by a rush of silence and memories she hadn’t dared revisit. His face, older but achingly familiar. His steady gaze locking onto hers like a spotlight in the dim.
This wasn’t the first time she had seen him since moving home nearly two years ago, but it was the first time they’d made more than eye contact before darting away from each other.
16 years.
Her throat tightened, voice swallowed in the sudden storm in her chest. For a long beat, nothing moved—only the rapid thump of her heart.
Then, barely above a whisper, she managed,
“Hey.”
Her gaze flickered down at the papers scattered between them, then back to the corridor stretching behind him—the hallway leading to her mother.
She blinked, chest tightening again, and almost forced the words out, sharper this time, “I—I have to go. My mom—”
Without waiting for a response, Elena bent quickly to gather the papers, then stepped around him, her footsteps echoing down the hall.
