Hot tears spilled over my eyelids and ran down the sides of my nose, dropping onto the edge of the cotton blanket Nurse Elena wrapped around both of us.

I didn’t make a sound, but my shoulders started to shake.

Nurse Elena didn’t give a speech.

She didn’t tell me everything was going to be fine or that family troubles were hard.

She simply pulled a box of tissues closer to the arm of the vinyl recliner and set it on the rolling tray.

“Let it out, Claire,” Nurse Elena said softly.

“She can feel your heartbeat.”