Leah
The night didn’t get easier after my father said he was sorry.
I had thought maybe it would.
Not better, exactly. Better was too much to ask from a hospital waiting room after midnight, with my father in ICU and my mother refusing to look at me.
But maybe easier.
It wasn’t.
I sat beside Olivia while the waiting room breathed around us. My mother spoke quietly to Daniel near the windows. Jacob had taken the same careful seat he’d chosen earlier, far enough from me that no one could call it together, close enough that no one could call it separate.
He was good at that.
Careful distances.
Careful words.
Careful everything.
Olivia’s hand stayed wrapped around mine beneath the armrest. Every now and then, her thumb moved once over my knuckles.
A reminder.
Still here.
You’re s
