"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.511Please respect copyright.PENANAHgKkDxMP4W
Joe opened the door.
It's not our mother who was standing by the door. 511Please respect copyright.PENANATd0CQuYxFZ
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..."511Please respect copyright.PENANAxlQhYHD23C
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. 511Please respect copyright.PENANAAeZjzfnWoy
Silence.511Please respect copyright.PENANA214qEqqGql
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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