"Joe, wake up!!! Wake up, you sleepy head! Mom is back from Vancouver!!!" I ran to my brother's room with excitement.
"Oh yes, mom is finally back! I miss her so much." He jumped out of bed as I was entering his room.
We both ran downstairs expectantly.569Please respect copyright.PENANAOh8UUm2i30
Joe opened the door.
It's not our mother who was standing by the door. 569Please respect copyright.PENANAoBC3Nt0XZD
It was her colleague from work.
She looked up. She looked pale, very pale. And she was holding our mother's hat.
I knew right away that something was not right.
"Honey, I am terribly sorry...I am terribly sorry..." She bursted into tears. "Your mom was de...dead in a tragic car accident... I am so sorry..."569Please respect copyright.PENANAZ1K8xbCgwL
Me and Joe looked at each other. We could tell from each other's watery eyes that we were trying so hard to hold back our tears. 569Please respect copyright.PENANA0A9LMeFhK5
Silence.569Please respect copyright.PENANALw1ILLrWYB
Then I took the hat from the lady, and shut the door. Me and Joe were awake all night, but we couldn't say anything at all.
This was the first Christmas without our mom.
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