Nana stood in front of them,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrTtVqzvo0
hands quietly signing a memory long buried.
It was a story from many years ago—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0qvSbAuA5j
a time when she was even younger than she was now,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhkzsABvJ0Q
perhaps too young to speak in full sentences.
Back then, she lived in an orphanage,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBciefy05Ig
a place where winters felt endlessly long42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyqBcpGSDFb
and colds were always going around.
In that place,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYltr0oDa0V
older children—especially girls—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡigBcDKoImI
were often tasked with caring for the younger ones.
That time, it was her turn.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Uaf9VeQaU
Five babies, still wrapped in swaddling cloth,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5S5CQo857J
were laid out around her in little bassinets.
Outside, the flu was running rampant.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡayW0p0J8O9
The nuns were overwhelmed—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcvvUHd2yBS
coughing echoed through the halls,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN2ktEg6kTL
cries filled every room.
Only Nana had not fallen ill.
She sat among the babies,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHRcIFmmjaP
planning to watch over them while working through a math problem—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjHChUMK9K3
she remembered it clearly:42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZZTjm5bUl5
a fill-in-the-blank problem where the numbers had to add up to 100.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhkH3hXkZN2
Even the nun had said,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKOmovkqLtX
“Leave it for now. We’ll come back to it later.”
But she didn’t want to let it go.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTgMqazMysy
She stared at her paper,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIXlFEfNTRK
biting the end of her pencil in thought.
Then one of the babies began to cry.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7w8OPIps3i
Then the second.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX9NYsie16y
Then the third…
Within ten seconds,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ3hz0BPa1b
all five were crying at once,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoXBBkFA5i8
their voices rising and falling like shrill alarms.
Nana stood up right away.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV7s5GKYD8L
She picked them up one by one, checked them—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGS2TOFQALv
No fever.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3TkEfPXI76
No wet diapers.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRFevdVFG1e
No spit-up.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAc6bzA11mx
Everything seemed normal.
But they wouldn’t stop crying.
She tried.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJjfkMvR5QQ
She patted them.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfDjr7UUJ0J
She rocked them.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTDCLHeAMek
She hummed lullabies.
Nothing worked.
Her head began to throb—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0LMTCZ9hfj
a deep, pounding pressure42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgEaKRMFrWb
like someone was hammering on her skull from the inside.
“So loud…” she thought.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA77Nnpp3u7
“And I still haven’t solved that math problem…”42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyplST4gh4X
“Will the nun come in? She’s already so busy…”42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwtstqBiHPK
“It’s too loud… I need it to stop… My head…”
Her vision blurred.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ23DNRgXZkQ
It felt like something was being torn42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmcjLXSFIMU
from the inside of her brain.
She looked up.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaISMlmtqPC
One single thought remained in her mind.
Her mouth opened—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjx48CL4qQf
almost on instinct—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxyENRm59Oe
and she whispered two words:
“Be quiet.”
The voice was soft.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD0hCXBDd1x
Very soft.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwkcwmSoejP
Barely more than breath—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv1DQHXWTWq
but perfectly clear.
And in the next instant,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡosG36v8Jwe
the entire room fell silent.
The babies went quiet.
Not calmed—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHPQnIaBmXf
stopped.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtWwYCF9f6t
Not asleep—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv2d6uVUrwM
silent.
Nana froze.
Her eyes widened.
She lunged toward the nearest baby,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkrJAKWvhn0
hands trembling, reaching out.
The baby was still crying—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRieaMRPrkb
there were tears sliding down its cheeks.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiOSNnn6fJ0
But its mouth—
Shut.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZOIIOmXjNW
Tightly shut,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv9xuMXt5JE
as if sealed by something invisible.
She checked the second.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRGdLjRhYJ1
The third.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLEjQ9kfFBh
All the same.
Nana stumbled back.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt8tJwAzJrG
Her legs gave out.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ18VbguDaFI
She collapsed to the floor, trembling.
Her throat began to burn.
It felt like a red-hot metal rod was being dragged across her vocal cords.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYthIiOWrdh
Every breath was fire.
The room was unnaturally quiet—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3XMV44ILnR
quiet enough to hear the echo of water pipes in the ceiling.
And yet,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrDv9IxBPWY
her head throbbed even harder.
No one spoke when she finished the story.
Batman’s face was grim.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCW2EMX3sdC
His brow deeply furrowed,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqnbWbiTVb9
calculating the possible range of sonic anomalies42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfKM2x8z6pB
and neural interference fields.
Dick and Alfred stood silent,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8lyaSgexG0
eyes on this fragile-looking girl,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT53ULgM56o
a thousand possibilities running through their minds.
This wasn’t trauma.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWIqlnkA6ym
Not just voice strain.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBTJjoAT6Qi
It was something else.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHmmH8JWM5z
A power.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc8H6aFu2Vh
Internal.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE6IltN7do0
Immeasurable.
Nana kept her head down,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjnGugz3vGi
fingers curling into the hem of her dress.
Then,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjsNeYVYEK0
a hand reached out.
Jason stepped up beside her.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4eElEnNQcU
He didn’t speak.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLnDcwFHDHc
But his presence42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfgVz88xrbE
spoke for him.
His hand was warm.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf7Lvn2MkHW
Firm, despite his unspoken worry.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzLvri7gKEK
Grounded.
Nana paused—42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTMPWw1i7Hp
then slowly reached back and took his hand.
It felt like something unspoken was exchanged.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkmjX6YAjDU
A vow.42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhVFYwZCKI1
A message that said,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB6UEMfCmTN
“I’m still here.”
She didn’t know what this power would bring,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFPoDkXs71Z
or whether it would happen again.
But she knew one thing:
As long as Jason was beside her,42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvzMSs6sUYo
she wouldn’t be afraid.
42Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH75bUYn5ox
