Someone was shaking me awake, and it was getting annoying. I swatted the hand away again, but it came back like it did whenever I tried to get rid of it.

I wished I could open my eyes and slap the person so hard that they would find it difficult to get their bearings for a week, but I had to open my eyes first, and I was too tired to open them.

I had been by Dad’s side for almost a week now with little to no sleep because I wanted to see if he would wake up, and those sleepless nights had ...