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Time and Tide - "Bargaining" | Penana
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Time and Tide
ISSUE #15
Author: Viktoria Fyodorova
Time and Tide
Author: Viktoria Fyodorova
ISSUE #15
"Bargaining"
No Plagiarism!Fq9b7QbEfrN0CROQyVJqposted on PＥNAＮＡ

Why?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwUB3Ahiw3C

Why was it him?

Why did the world take my parents’

only biological child?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8ATdwyQfdS

Why wasn’t it me?

I have sinned so much in the past few years,

to the point that I have lost track

of all the horrible things

I have done.

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWPis5Gd6ZW

Why was my brother the one punished

and not me?

Why did this have to happen so close to his

32nd birthday?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡchgLwxPx5R

After everything he has been through,

this is how the world repays him for

overcoming his

alcoholism?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ93vhb14fJb

Why is the world such a cruel place?

Why is there just as much good in the world

as there is evil?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjf9WYpZK4b

Why were Mom and I the last people

he talked to?

Why did he die

only 20 minutes after getting off the phone with us?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFKtAbQ37Kp

Why did he accept those drugs from someone?

a straight-up murderer?

on the street?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUMtbjVXjta

Why am I still here?

Why did I survive those 24 hours

on the doorstep of the orphanage

in frigid Russia,

with only a blanket and crib to guide me?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcZdQaHTnP9

Why,

out of all the orphans,

did my adopted parents

choose

me?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqJulMYkIkh

Why did my brother want a little sister?

I was a chubby, little thing—

severely malnourished—

and now I struggle with anxiety.

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIhzNXRYtiT

Why is grief so

mentally and physically exhausting?

Why are there so many people

who support us?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAUSU1CYocp

Is this really what love is all about?

Is that all grief is?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoaWl5Es7Wa

Why am I down here

and not with my family during this time of mourning?

Why did I come back to school

only a week after the tragedy?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSN34eJxM0N

Why am I so desperate to succeed,

considering the current circumstances?

106Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKvK4leCtXe

Most importantly...

What is the true meaning of this anomaly

that we call “life”?

216.73.217.139

ns216.73.217.139da2
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Time and Tide
Poetry
Adventure
Short Story
Last updated: Jun 3, 2026
Total word count: 3,470
Total reading time: 16 Minutes
adventure magic comingofage college timetravel warriors poetrycollection foundfamily animals destiny lifelessons prose nostalgia diversity collegestudents symbolism writingchallenge undiscovered schoolassingment wildcard
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