My head aching in pain and my wide-open eyes burning at the sight of the bright screen, I forcefully shut my computer down with a bright smile smeared on my face. I was FINALLY done with online school. With a rush of energy, I got up from my chair, put on my black workout gear, and bolted out my bedroom door.

Turning the sharp corner of the hallway, I overheard my mother saying “I don’t know how bad it is.”

With a hesitant voice, I asked, “How is Maw Maw doing in the hospital?”
In a monotonous tone, she responds, “She’s doing fine.”
Looking at her glum and worn-down face, I knew there was something wrong. Staring blankly at the floor, curious but reluctant, I started my workout.
Overhearing her talking anxiously to my aunt, she continues to say, “Well, see if Sophie can get any information on her.” ​Why is she talking about Dr. Sophie?
Sweat running down my face and gasping for air, I was relieved the workout was over.

As my breathing started to steady, I noticed the drained look on my mother’s face and asked her if she was okay.

“Yes,” she snapped back. My brain moving in different directions could not understand why she was acting so somber all of the sudden. ​Did I do something wrong?

Hunched back, I plodded myself on the blue chair facing directly towards my mother. Looking down at her phone with a stern face, she was not in the mood to talk.
Confused and bummed out, I slowly walked into my room. After hours passed, I roamed into my parents’ room and saw her sitting in the chair, teary-eyed. A nervous rush filled my body, and my heart started to sink in my chest. My gut was telling me that something was wrong with Maw Maw, and with a blank expression, I asked again if she was okay.

With a restrained voice, my mother replied, “The doctor found a large mass in her lung. It could be cancer.”

My feet nailed to the floor, my body paralyzed, words spewed from my mouth. “Well, what are they going to do? What does Dr. Sophie say?”

Holding back tears, my mother uttered these unforgettable words. “I don’t know, Emily.” As my body stood as a statue, glancing into my mother’s eyes, I slightly turned my head and felt like crying. ​Don’t cry, Emily.
I snapped back into reality and saw my strong mother, who was trying to appear calm, crumble inside. I turned around and walked down what seemed to be an endless hallway into my room. I flung myself into bed and stared at the white ceiling. Even though my numb body could not move, my mind kept running a million miles an hour. I wished I could see my Maw Maw right then and there, but instead, at that moment, I painfully realized that, in a blink of an eye, I can lose my beloved grandmother to a disease that has nothing to do with the quarantine.