My 22-year-old goldfish darts across the tank, her tail covered with white spots, her body swollen and lopsided. I’ve called the fish experts, dissolved Epsom salt with the same spoon my mom gave me when I was nine, dosed the water with Stress Zyme. Now I’m dropping de-shelled peas into the tank to ease possible constipation. When Goldeen inhales one whole and chokes, I panic-FaceTime my dad, crying. Goldeen spits it out while I’m still on the phone. "You know sweetie," he says calmly, putting my dead mom’s tweezers back in the mirror, "one day she’s going to die, too."
Michelle La Vone's work can be found in The Good Life Review and In Short. She was a finalist in Five Minutes' fall 2024 Flirt contest. She writes at thefieldmaus.substack.com