Love you forever and ever,

Parisa

P.S. I’m so sorry I was being so stubborn. You were right about Gideon all along. I really really miss you. I really really hate this.

Elena

Hi, Parisa. Text me when you get the chance. It’s about Gabriela.

Parisa

Hi, Elena. Is everything okay?

Elena

Gabriela’s in the hospital. She tested positive for Adema.

Parisa

Oh my God. I’m so sorry. I don’t even know what to say. What can I do?

Elena

Text her. Keep her spirits up. We need her to stay strong.

Parisa

Of course. Just please know my family is here. Anything you guys need. Truly.

Elena

Thank you, sweetie. That means a lot.

Parisa

She’s my best friend. And she’s the strongest person I know. She’s going to get through this. She has to.

Elena

Let’s all pray for the best.

GABRIELA

No one warns you that once you turn eighteen, even if you’re still a high school senior who lives with their parents, the rest of the world is required to treat you like an adult—by law. If you’re found guilty of a crime, you’ll be locked up with inmates who may have lived the equivalent of three or four or five of your lifetimes. You’re not old enough to order a vodka tonic at a bar, but you are old enough to go off to war and lose a limb, your sanity, or your life in the process. No one warns you that, during a pandemic when the death toll has surged at alarming rates, you could be in an ICU room alone, wondering if you are going to exit the world without the people who brought you into it by your side. Not to mention that sitting with this fear will make it harder to breathe, at a time when the panic you’re feeling already makes you feel like you’re gasping for air. But this has been my reality for the past week.

None of the nurses or doctors have given me a straight answer about my condition. I have no idea if I’m getting better. And the doctor standing in my room right now, whom I’ve never met before, is no different than the others.

“It’s a tricky illness, Miss Gonzales,” he tells me from behind an N95 mask and a face shield. “One day you feel like you’re getting better and the next day you take a turn for the worse. The best we can do is tell you your condition is currently stable.”