I Fell in Love with Hope - Lancali

They have us.
They found a home in us.
“Why can’t we make it understand?” Sony asks, fear trembling from
her throat.
Neo bites his lower lip to keep it from shaking. He’s grown attached
to the fire between us. So much that he tucks red strands behind her
ear and pretends he isn’t holding back tears.
“We have soldiers in our blood,” he whispers, like the start of a
bedtime story. “They’re ruthless and unbiased. To them, there’s no
difference between who they’re meant to protect, and an enemy.”
The metronome slows. Sony’s lung matches the beat of her heart.
“They’re blind. You can’t convince them of their wrongdoings.” Neo
says.
He continues to pet Sony’s hair. “The irony is lost on them.”
Like an apology for the sins of our sickness, Neo drops his head to
her shoulder and holds Sony till she falls asleep.
—
Winter arrives. When it does, death no longer waits for Sony.
Little by little, the fight tilts in her favor. The inflammation in her lung
goes down with every step she climbs and every laugh she
manages. One day, she puts on her dirty white sneakers and steals
apples in the early morning.
Neo and I wake to the sound of her chewing and her chuckles as
she watches cartoons.
“Neo, let’s do a puzzle,” she says.