Anne was awakened a little after midnight by a hacking cough coming from the baby monitor. She struggled into her robe and shoved her feet into the slippers that had been laid so carefully next to the bed. As she crossed the room to the door, she hit the button on the radio. The rock station she had the dial set to served to wake her up.

The hallway was dark as Anne hurried past the closet and bathroom. She pulled her robe tightly around her as she had done so many nights before. As she reached the room, she quickly opened the door. Megan was sitting up in bed. Her convulsing body sent shadows across the walls that startled Anne. They looked like something out of a bad horror movie. As Anne flipped the light switch on, she saw that Meg's face was red. Anne hurried to her side. She could hear Journey screaming from the radio down the hall as she scooped Megan into her arms. There was nothing she could do to soothe the coughs emerging from Megan's throat. After a few moments, Megan began to quiet down. As Anne held the young girl in her arms, she became aware of the tears streaming down her face. The radio continued to blare hard rock, "Troubled times, caught between confusion and pain..."

Anne felt Megan's breathing begin to regulate. She carefully pulled the child away from her and put her in the bed. She was mildly surprised at the girl's weight; the AZT had been helping Megan continue grow, even while AIDS was slowly destroying her. Anne pulled the covers over the little body and sat on the floor next to the bed. She stroked her daughter's hair for a few minutes before falling asleep on the pink shag carpet.

While Anne was drinking her coffee that morning, she rubbed her temples and sighed. Last night was just as draining physically and emotionally as all the other nights she had spent comforting Megan. It was just tearing her apart watching her little girl slowly die. She had an appointment with Dr. Gellar at 11:30 that morning but she decided to let Megan sleep for awhile longer. Megan needed her sleep. The constant coughing for hours at a time was physically draining for her.

Anne took a long hot shower to relax. She always brought the monitor in the bathroom with her just in case Megan woke up. She started doing that when Megan woke up choking on her tongue while having a seizure. Anne was in the shower and she was hearing faint noises that sounded like choking, It's a good thing she went to check or Megan would be dead.

After she shower, she got dressed and went to wake up Megan. As she opened her eyes and saw her mommy, she smiled and said "Hi!". That brought Anne to tears. She had such a beautiful little girl and she hated seeing her sick. She dressed Megan, gave her breakfast and her medication. Megan hated taking pills but Anne made a game of it. For every pill she would take, Anne would take a vitamin. Megan felt better knowing that she wasn't the only one taking pills. After breakfast, Anne put Megan's coat and shoes on and they were off to Dr. Gellar's office again.