The sun hadn't even fully crested the horizon when Ronnie pulled into her uncles’ driveway, the soft hum of the engine barely loud enough to stir the sleepy morning. Dew clung to the windshield, and Theo sat in the backseat with his hoodie pulled over his head, eyes droopy and silent.
Ronnie slipped the car into park and turned in her seat to face him.
“I’m sorry, buddy,” she said quietly. “I know it’s early.”
Theo rubbed his eyes but didn’t complain. He simply looked at her with that tired sort of acceptance he reserved for mornings that felt... off.
Marvin opened the front door, waving them in with a sleepy smile and a steaming mug of coffee in hand. “You’re lucky I love you,” he muttered as Ronnie ushered Theo up the porch steps.
“I know,” she whispered back, hugging him with one a
