The apartment door opens into warmth.
Mia gets approximately one second to register the temperature before Ellie hits her.
"You're home."
"Ellie—" Mia gets one hand on the wall to stop them tipping over. "I can't breathe."
Ellie loosens her grip by approximately ten percent, which is not enough, but it's something. "Do you know how many times I looked at that door? Every sound in this hallway. Every single one."
"I'm sorry." Mia extracts herself gently, steps out of her shoes. "I should have texted sooner."
"You should have not gotten abducted, Mia, that's the correct takeaway."
"I wasn't abducted. I had a plan."
"That's exactly what someone with a terrible plan would say."
Mia takes her hand and pulls her to the sofa.
They sit facing each other, and Mia tells her everything.
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