Chapter 99: Preparations

Her suitcase yawned open across the bed, ready to swallow up the artifacts of Olivia's life. She stood before it, her shirt clutched in her hands, frozen. How does one pack for a journey into the unknown? "Liv?" Alex's voice wafted in from the doorway. "You all right?" She blinked back into herself and said, "Yeah, um, I just... dunno what to bring." Alex took the shirt from Olivia and folded it into the suitcase. "Let's start with the basics. We can always get anything else you need after." As they worked together to pack, the closeness of what they were about to undergo settled over them, squeezing together just like a heavy blanket. The clinical trial moved ever closer—a beacon of hope now tinged with fear. "You called your folks, didn't you?" Alex asked as she carefully packed Olivia's pills into their carrying case. Olivia nodded, her movements inflecting into a drawl. "They're.worried. Dad wants to fly out, but I told him to wait. I don't want them putting their lives on ho