The phone kept buzzing in her hand.
Sylvie stared at the screen for a few seconds too long with her thumb hovering just above the answer button.
She had not spoken to her mother in weeks. Sometimes months. Not because of a fight or because of distance. Just… because that was how it had always been.
She finally answered.
"Hello?"
Her mother’s voice came through clear and calm.
"Sylvie," she said. "I got informed about the engagement."
Of course she did.
Sylvie sank onto the side of her bed, her free hand curling into the fabric of her robe. "It’s… recent," she replied carefully.
"I know." A pause. Papers rustled faintly on the other end, as if her mother were multitasking. "How are you?"
"I’m fine," Sylvie said, because that was the easiest answer to give. There was another pause
