Mom arrived on Mark’s arm, eyes bright with the kind of light that makes the whole world soft. She wore the dress she’d fretted over, the one that had made her laugh when she tried it on in the shop, and Daniel beside her looked like the man who walked into an overcast life and carried sun with him. He bowed to me with an old-world courtesy that I found unexpectedly disarming.
Clara was there too, but different from the cautious woman who’d walked through our threshold months ago. She kept her edges softer, and when she hugged Mom, the hug was small and true. I felt the room breathe easier at the sight of it.
We had a dozen people from the maintenance crew come as well—Eli with his wrist still stiff but smiling, Rosa with work boots on and flowers in her hair. The presence of the crew ma
