Chapter 4

My heart slammed against my chest, making it hard to draw a full breath. My stomach twisted with emptiness, aching painfully. Was I just too hungry?

With trembling hands, I grabbed the half-eaten chocolate and forced it into my mouth in one desperate bite. The sickly sweet taste barely calmed my racing heart, and the weight and dizziness in my head only intensified.

A sharper cold than the wind before ran through me, seeping into my very bones. I wrapped the small blanket tighter around me, but any warmth it offered felt drained away by some invisible force, impossible to hold onto.

Just as I felt myself about to collapse, a black car slowly approached the rest stop entrance. It was like a lifeline in the storm. I summoned every ounce of strength and shuffled forward, staring at the driver as he lowered the window.

It was a stranger.

"Sir, can I borrow your phone? I feel awful…"

My voice was so weak I could barely hear it myself.

The man froze for a moment, then quickly pulled out his phone and handed it to me. "Hey, kid, what's wrong? You look awful."

I didn't have the energy to explain. My fingers stiffened as I pressed Dad's number.

This time, the call went through almost immediately.

"Dad…" My voice broke into a sob, shaking so badly it barely formed words. "When is Uncle Ben coming? I feel awful. My head is spinning, and my heart is racing. Am I sick?"

On the other end, Dad's voice carried impatience. "What now? Didn't I tell you to wait? Your uncle left a while ago. There's some traffic, but he'll be here soon! Can't you wait a second? You dawdled and didn't get in the car, and now you're not feeling good?"

"It's not that, Dad. I really don't feel well…"

My protest sounded feeble even to myself.

"Enough! Stop making trouble and wait quietly! It's the holiday, and you're causing nothing but chaos!"

The line went dead again. The busy signal pricked my ears like ice.

I tried to tell them I couldn't hold on any longer, but the line had already gone dead. I stood there, clutching the phone, forgetting entirely to return it to the stranger beside me.

He took it back and gently said, "Don't worry. Your family should be here soon. Do you want to get into my car to warm up?"

I shook my head, fearing that Uncle Ben might lose track of me if I moved. I could only whisper, "Thank you, sir," and slowly make my way back to where I had been standing.

I lost track of time as the shivering slowly subsided and my heart began to slow. Still, I felt no comfort. My hands and feet felt stiff and completely uncooperative.

I tried to march in place to get warm, but even lifting my legs felt like wading through molasses.

The sky had fallen into complete darkness. I stared blankly at the rest stop entrance. However, everything in front of me grew fuzzy, and my thoughts started to unravel.

Clenching my teeth, I inched along the edge of the buildings. Every breath was labored, as if my throat were being squeezed and a heavy weight pressed down on my chest.

I opened my mouth, trying desperately to suck in more air, but each breath came short and shallow. My vision blurred further, and the streetlights haloed into dancing spots of light in my eyes.

My knees gave out, and I collapsed weakly onto the icy ground. The blanket had slid halfway off, and I couldn't muster the energy to pull it back.

I was exhausted. My eyelids were too heavy to lift, and my consciousness felt like it was sinking, dragging me down.

Through the haze, I thought I saw my parents running toward me, with worry written across their faces.

Before I fully closed my eyes, I thought how wonderful it was that they had finally come for me.