Callie
IN THE MORNING, I LAY on my mattress for a long time, hoping to fall back asleep. When I didn’t, I tried teasing out the threads of magic again. The lines of fireflies swayed towards my fingertips every time I moved as if they were trying to help, but they still felt alien to me, like pressing against a limb numb with pins and needles.
Joe, Elijah and Chloe’s voices floated through from the other room. I couldn’t hear the words, but from the cadence, they were chatting about nothing. Sometimes these were the worst parts – when things were calm, almost normal. Almost normal, but also so far from it it hurt.
My door was ajar, and Mosby padded his way in.
“Hey, buddy.” I reached out a hand, but Mosby went straight for my face, wet nose snuffling against mine.
“I don’t have any
