After we finished our prayer, my mother left me to join my father in their room. We all slept soundly. I dreamt of Rhuel, Noli, and me, chasing fireflies and butterflies in the moonlight of 17th Street and jumping to reach them. In my dream it was night, but it seemed like time did not matter or even exist. The moon that had broken out earlier to see Iya Vellit’s home came out again, casting our neighborhood in a soft, yellow light and dark shadows. The fireflies and butterflies flew into her yard, and we ran after them. We opened her gate, and we were not afraid. Surrounded by such beauty, our fear of her and the shadows disappeared. The moonbeams cascaded down the mango leaves, giving all of them a soft, green glow. We caught them in our palms. They felt like warm, soft, happy tears.
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