"Mom," Toby protested, "you don't have to worry about that right now." Sarah smiled faintly. "I know, sweetheart. But if I stop asking whether you did your homework, you'll know I'm really sick." Toby tried to smile back, then bent his head so she would not see the tears.
The doctor spoke to Sarah first, not to Silas or Toby, and explained that the infection needed close monitoring because of her underlying lung disease. She might remain in the hospital for several days, and the treatment plan would be adjusted according to how she responded. No one offered the reassurance Toby wanted, that she would be home the next morning and everything would return to the way it had been. He found himself listening for the quiet hiss of her old oxygen machine even though this room sounded entirely different.
Before visiting hours ended, Sarah asked Mrs. Alvarez to keep Toby overnight and authorized Silas to transport him to school and appointments if needed. She wanted the arrangements written down clearly rather than left to assumptions, and the social worker helped them document the temporary plan. Silas signed where asked and assured her he would not use the emergency to move the boy somewhere against her wishes. Sarah closed her eyes briefly, relieved by one decision she would not have to fight over.
In the hospital corridor, Toby asked what happened if she stayed sick forever. Silas did not try to answer with cheerful lies. He told the boy that doctors were treating the infection, that they would know more with time, and that he could ask questions whenever he needed to. Then he added, "You don't have to be brave for me. You're allowed to be scared."
Toby stared at the polished floor for a long moment. "I'm scared all the time," he admitted. Silas sat beside him on a bench and waited. The boy began to cry quietly, shoulders shaking beneath the oversized jacket, and his uncle stayed there without offering instructions on how to stop.
For the first few days, Toby slept at Mrs. Alvarez's house and carried his schoolbooks back and forth in a grocery bag. Silas came every evening after the garage closed, brought updates Sarah had allowed him to share, and sat through homework that he sometimes understood less well than the boy. He learned how to make scrambled eggs without burning them, though Toby insisted his mother made them better. He also discovered that a child who had spent too long afraid to ask for anything often said he was fine even when he was hungry or exhausted.
On Wednesday, Toby's teacher sent home a note about the school's family reading night. Each student was supposed to bring someone to hear a short story they had written, and Toby had planned to ask his mother before she became ill. He shoved the paper beneath a pile of mail, certain she could not attend and uncertain whether anybody else would want to. Silas found it by accident while looking for a spelling list.