The stark white stick stared back at her, its single line a cruel mockery of the two she'd been yearning for. Ciara stared at it, her breath catching in her throat. Another month, another negative. The familiar pang of disappointment stabbed at her heart, a sharp, unwelcome guest. It was a familiar feeling now, a constant companion in their journey to parenthood.
She slumped against the cool porcelain of the bathroom sink, the weight of her sadness pressing down on her shoulders. It had been over a year, a year of hope and anticipation, of meticulous charting and careful timing, of whispered prayers and silent tears. Each month, the same ritual: the test, the hope, the crushing disappointment.
Tears welled in her eyes, blurring the stark white of the test. "Why not us?" she whispered, th
