Flash Fiction for the Purposeful Practitioner, Week #14 – Compassionate Gesture

The Six Easy Guidelines:

A photo prompt topic is to be used as your ‘muse’. They will arrive promptly at midnight each Wednesday morning.
Include the photo prompt and its credits with your story on your blog.
All stories are to be crafted and honed to under 200 words in length.
Each flash fiction piece should have a clear beginning, middle, and end. No serial stories. It is harder to stay abreast of a serial story. (Please keep content PG-13.
Once you have your post complete, create a pingback to this post if you are on WordPress. If that is not an option for you, add your post’s link in the comments section. It is the desire of this blog to become a flourishing writing community.
Plan a day to visit the writings of our challengers to enjoy our creations and to provide a little positive feedback.

Cover image is from pixabay.com

My Submission, 200 words:

For three days, she would look over and see the silhouette of a hand on the piece of fabric separating them. At first, it frightened her. She was already feeling vulnerable, laying in her hospital bed, not knowing who or what was on the other side of the sheet.

Private rooms were no longer available. So, as much as she desired privacy after her surgery, there was no choice but to have a roommate.

She hadn’t heard a single peep from her neighbour. All she saw was their hand. Every day. For three days.

A nurse came into the room, visited her neighbour, then came to her. “Emily,” she said, “can I show you something?”

Emily nodded, and the nurse held up a whiteboard.

“He lost the ability to speak, but would like to say something to you.”

Emily took the whiteboard and read what her neighbour had written: You have a very kind voice. I don’t have any family here and could really use the comfort of a friend.

Emily looked over and saw his hand placed against the fabric once again.

“Pull the curtain,” she said.

The nurse did, and Emily grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly.