The next few weeks passed in quiet shifts, the kind Arielle barely noticed until one morning she realized just how much had changed.
It wasn’t about grand gestures or big conversations. There weren’t any.
Instead, it was the small things — moments that didn’t feel important until she thought about them later.
The children’s center had been busy that day. There was a new batch of donated art supplies, and Arielle spent the morning unpacking brushes, paints, and stacks of sketch pads while the children buzzed with energy around her.
Kairo was there too.
He had shown up without warning, like he often did now, leaning against the doorway until one of the younger boys spotted him and ran over. The boy grabbed Kairo’s hand and started pulling him toward the tables where the rest of the chil
