MY PARENTS WALKED AWAY FROM ME AT THE HOSPITAL WHEN I WAS 13 — MY MOTHER WENT PALE WHEN THE DEAN CALLED MY NAME

in October when I was only 13 years old. I still remember the exact scent of that room. Antiseptic blended with the floral fragrance from the air freshener. I sat on the examination table with my legs hanging off the edge because I was still small for my age, dressed in one of those paper gowns that never seemed to close correctly in the back.

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