PIPER
"Oh no, you don't have to do that," I say as politely as I can. "I'm sure he's sleeping now."
"He's a night owl, you know that," she says with a laugh. "And if you're with me, no one will boot you out. Come on. I'll get you in to see him."
Again, I try to come up with the words to end this experience, but I can't summon anything. How do I tell this woman that I do not want to visit my own father while he's sick in the hospital?
She pulls ahead, walking through the halls with a confidence I don't possess, and Timofey falls into stride with me. "Your father?"
I groan. "Cirrhosis of the liver. He's back in the hospital right now. I… forgot."
"No, you didn't."
My mouth pulls into an exhausted grimace. Why does this man have to be privy to every thought in my mind?
"You're right. I didn't," I admit. "But I wanted to forget. I didn't want to think about him tonight."
"And yet now, we're going to visit." He gestures to the back of the nurse leading us to him. "You know her?"
