M had just about finished packing her things when she hurried back to the hospital. She had barely settled into the chair by the hospital bed when the door swung open, and Nathaniel walked in with Julian, who had just gotten out of school.


    "Why is your face so flushed?" Nathaniel asked, his eyesnding on her cheeks, which were as rosy as a sunrise.


    M paused for a moment and touched her face, realizing it must be from rushing over to the hospital.


    "Probably just the heat," she replied nonchntly, brushing off his concern. She then turned to chat with the child for a moment before pulling Nathaniel out of the room. Once they were out of earshot, she spoke up.


    "I''m about to be discharged. It''s not good for Julian to rely on me too much. You''re his guardian; you should be spending more time with him."


    Nathaniel hadn''t expected this conversation and was momentarily at a loss. He wanted to spend more time with Julian, but the child preferred to be with M, the ''mom'' he had chosen. What was he supposed to do? He knew M wasn''t obligated to take care of Julian and was grateful for all she had done so far.


    "How about this," Nathaniel suggested. "It''s the weekend for the next two days. Could you watch him a little longer? He really likes being with you. I''ll take him back after that."


    M thought for a moment and nodded. "Alright, but not tonight. A friend of mine needs me to help with some design sketches, and we''ll be pulling an all-nighter. You can bring him over tomorrow; it''ll give him some time to adjust."


    Nathaniel wanted to insist that it was fine, but seeing the cool determination on M''s face, he agreed.


    That evening, M had dinner with Julian, offeringforting words and promising to y with him the next day. Only then did the child reluctantly leave with his uncle.


    Once they were gone, M let out a sigh of relief. She had to sort out the car situation with Miranda tonight and couldn''t leave Julian alone in the hospital room. Thankfully, she had managed to convince Nathaniel.


    ...


    It was past one in the morning when M drove back to the vicinity of the Willow Lane Residences. Miranda was already there, waiting with the freshly cleaned


    car.


    M got out of her vehicle and retrieved license tes made from cardboard, painted meticulously to look authentic. Her artistic skills ensured they were nearly indistinguishable from the real thing.


    First, she reced the tes with the fake ones. Then the two of them spray- painted the car a deeper color.


    Once they were done, M got into the car, now simply disguised, donning a mask and hat. She and Miranda parted ways, each taking a different route, heading towards more secluded areas.


    After about two hours of driving, M reached an abandoned car lot on the outskirts of town. The night was dark and devoid of people. She smashed all the car windows with a hammer and battered the body until it was unrecognizable. Only then did she remove the fake tes and slip away from the junkyard.


    After leaving the junkyard, she maneuvered through several backroads until she saw her car parked by the roadside.


    Opening the passenger door, she slid into the seat. Miranda, also wearing a hat and mask, nced at her before starting the engine and driving away.


    They drove to a more distant location and burned the makeshift cardboard tes until they were nothing but ashes.