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There was blood everywhere. Nett had a tube down her throat and one in her nose. There were new machines at the side of the bed that whistled and beeped. But the worst sight was modest, fragile Nett lying naked and uncovered on the bed with male doctors standing casually about talking.

“What happened? What the hell is going on?” Rhonda screamed at the doctors. She tried to cover Nett with the sheet that she had picked up from the floor, but the sheets were bloody, and there were too many tubes in the way.

“Your mother went into respiratory arrest. We had to intubate her. We think she’s okay now, but we’ll need to run some more tests.”

“No more tests!” Rhonda screamed at them. “Get out! Get out! You’re killing her! Get out of here. Now!”

“You’re just upset.” The doctor’s tone was patronizing. “Come outside and we’ll talk about it.”

“No, you go outside! Get out now!”

The doctors obliged, taking their conversation out into the corridor. Nett was unconscious, and her eyes were swollen. The large tube extending out of her mouth had been taped to her face. Her hair was a mess. Rhonda walked up the hallway and grabbed a stack of sheets and towels off a linen cart. As she removed the dirty linen from the bed, she found two of Nett’s front teeth, broken and chipped, under a pillow. She looked at the teeth, then at Nett’s face, and fell to her knees. She put her face in her hands and cried. Rhonda realized that she was going to lose her best friend.

Scandal, disgrace, and disappointment marred Rhonda’s graduation. Nett was home from the hospital and living with Rhonda and the children. Rhonda had bought her a new outfit and had sent a hairdresser to the house to do her hair. But when Eddie went to the house to pick up Nett and the children, Nett was too weak and too sick to attend.

Daddy said he didn’t come because he didn’t have carfare.

Rhonda had maintained a 3.99 GPA and was valedictorian of her class. She was also president of the Student Government Association. She had been one of the principal players in a student protest that resulted in the president of the college being removed from office. Two weeks prior to graduation, a group of students accused Rhonda of sleeping with her professors in order to receive good grades. They put signs all over the campus. Some members of the committee that had brought the president up on charges accused her of betraying them in the media and with local politicians. As a member of the committee to search for and appoint a new president of the college, Rhonda was being wooed and solicited by candidates for the job. When she informed them that she intended to vote her conscience, they called her a sellout. People she had once considered friends were now questioning her character. People who were supporting her privately were ignoring her publicly. Rhonda was confused and hurt, but she stood up for herself.

Rhonda made herself a beautiful white dress of English eyelet for graduation. At fourteen dollars per yard for the fabric, it was the most expensive dress she had ever worn. The children wore matching white outfits. When Rhonda walked across the stage to receive her degree, the children walked with her. Damon did a little jig in the middle of the stage to the delight of the audience. Eddie and his entire family came. Even Grandma came and took pictures. Though she never praised or congratulated Rhonda, it was clear that Grandma was proud and excited.

Without Nett or Daddy there, the graduation meant little to Rhonda. She had worked so hard to prove to them that she could do it, and they were not there to see it. She understood Nett’s not being there. Daddy’s excuse was totally unacceptable.

Rhonda spent the summer taking care of Nett in and out of the hospital. Nett would get better, then worse; and the doctors still did not know what was wrong. Finally, Nett began to steadily improve. She grew stronger, and the color came back to her face. She was released from the hospital three weeks before Rhonda was to enter law school. A week later, Eddie decided it was time for