The C word

She just dropped it into conversation. You know, just chatting really but the air sucked from the room down the phone.

In her hospital gown she looked like a sparrow, trapped in a building she didn't belong in. We hoped she'd be home for Christmas but didn't dare ask.

The ward was cacophonic. I tried to console but struggled to hear or think. How anyone could get better in that chaos I couldn't comprehend.

In fact none of them did, they lived their last amid that commotion.

Except her.

She was the only one that heard that C word.

Clear.