I turned the faucet one last time, hoping for a miracle, but the pipes just groaned. Jamie stood in the doorway, his towel tied loosely on him.
"Is it the pipes, Mom?" he asked.
I couldn't look at him. I couldn't tell him that our water supply had been disconnected. The final notice must've come and gone without me knowing.
I didn't have the words, so I reached for my phone, I called Lauren.
She picked up on the third ring, her voice half-distracted, like she was stirring soup or typing one-handed. “Cyn?”
“Hey,” I said, my voice cracking despite my best efforts. “I know this is out of the blue, but… could Jamie and I crash with you? Just for a while? The... the building's water is out, and I think it's going to be a while.”
She didn’t ask questions.
“Oh my God, of course,” she said
