Twelve Hours Early

His sixteen-year-old sister, Lin Xiaoman, sat behind the counter doing homework. An ECG patch showed beneath her collar. A harsh red cross glowed in the corner of her old tablet. “My monitor is offline again.” “The carrier's acting up. It'll come back.” Lin slipped the seventy-five yuan into the drawer. He did not mention the disconnection notice. Xiaoman's face was always a shade too pale, though her eyes were bright. “The nurse said if it stays offline for six hours, we have to upload at the hospital.” A round trip to the municipal hospital cost forty-eight yuan. Lin counted the cash in the drawer, picked up his bag, and said, “I'll find an old module that can catch the public network.”