Back to Back, by Rani Jayakumar

WINNER
SIDERIUS CLASSIC 100-WORD
​COMPETITION, 2024

"You don't know me," she said. I guess I didn't. I never really had, of course. Children are torn from your body, their thoughts their own. "No, I don't," I said, my back pressed against the bathroom door. On the other side, she stifled a sob, and my heart broke. "Oh, honey..." I said, slipping my fingers under the door, just the tips on the other side. She sniffled. Then I felt the soft pressure of her small warm fingers on mine. We sat there, back to back, fingers to fingers, until I heard the soft click of the lock.