Silence descended between us again. We walked along the sidewalk quietly until we finally arrived at the park.
"Come on." He tugged at my arm. "Let's see if we can catch a butterfly."
As we walked past rows of trees, Gabriel pointed out various butterflies to me, and I listened intently, soaking up as many facts as possible, hoping desperately to learn something useful from them.
I kept catching glimpses of Gabriel's profile. I could tell that he didn't seem entirely happy to be with me, and I understood. He didn't want me there because I was a burden. He felt responsible for me. And I also knew that my absence in his life during the past months had caused quite a rift between him and my siblings. It was as if he didn't feel like he belonged anywhere.
At one point, when we stopped next
