Help me. Please don’t let me die.
Elelliana’s voice was thin, like it was breaking. Her whole body shook on the cold interlocking tiles in front of the modern supermarket. Her big pregnant belly was stretched tight, and her wrapper was already smeared with dust and mud from where she had fallen.
A sharp pain hit her again.
She cried out and grabbed her belly with both hands.
People stood around her in a circle, but nobody bent down. Nobody held her hand. Nobody called an ambulance.
Instead, laughter rose like smoke.
“Ah. Ah. See drama?” one woman said, shaking her head.
A man chewing gum scoffed. “I know this type. If you touch her now, she will accuse you tomorrow.”
Another person pointed at Elelliana’s spilled shopping bag. “Maybe she wants free money. Everybody calm down.”