Chapter 1 - Tragedy Â
"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die..." Ecclesiastes 3:1-2a Â
Ri-i-i-i-ing. The seventh-grade students at Lincoln Middle School all took their seats in Ms. Harris' classroom. "All right class, put your books away. Today we are going to have a math quiz." Danika Morales groaned along with the rest of the students. She felt a tap on her shoulder, and a piece of folded lined paper fell into her lap. Danika looked up to make sure Ms. Harris didn't see. She opened the note under her desk and read, Is your cell on silent? She quickly wrote back, Yes, and then passed the note back to Cindy as she placed her book in her desk and removed her pencil for the test. She felt her phone vibrate in the front pocket of her hoodie and took it out to glance at the text message. It read, Math is so boring. Danika grinned. Cindy hated math as much as she did. I know how you feel. I don't know how I'll ever make it through medical school! Can't wait till next period, she quickly texted back. Â
<><><> Â "Hey, Dani, can you come to my house after school today?" Cindy asked during lunch. Â
She loved spending time with Cindy, especially since her parents owned a nice cottage a block from the beach. Many times the two of them would take their surfboards out to ride some waves, or just sit on the sand and watch the tides roll in. Danika thought for a moment. "No, I don't think I can today. My dad said I need to get caught up with my assignments. I hate homework." She rolled her eyes. "Besides," she added in a more serious tone, "Dad's having another treatment again today. I can't wait until he's done with all that stuff."Â
"Yeah, me too. I've heard it can be rough," her friend sympathized. "And now that you mention it, I should probably catch up on my homework too." Cindy sighed. "I can't believe my mom and dad are getting a divorce. They were getting along just fine. I don't know what happened. Why does life have to change?"Â
Danika hugged her friend. "I don't know. Don't worry. I won't change, I'll be your friend forever," she promised.Â
<><><> Â When Danika walked through the door of her suburban two-story home, she quickly dropped her backpack on the couch and walked to the refrigerator to find something to eat. After she finished making herself a PBJ sandwich, she picked up her backpack and headed for her room. Since dad won't be home for a while, I can check my email real quick and then finish my homework, Danika thought, as she searched through her backpack to find her smart-phone. She tried to keep her mind on her studies but her thoughts often drifted to her father. She couldn't help but worry about him.Â
