Hazel pov
I sat at the small kitchen table in Maya’s house. The kitchen smelled like butter and sugar. Maya’s mother just took a tray of cookies out of the oven. They were chocolate chip. The chocolate was still melting. I took a bite. It was warm and sweet. I closed my eyes and smiled.
For the first time today, I felt safe. I felt normal.
Maya was sitting across from me. She was laughing at something her little sister, Lily, said. Lily was twelve. She was loud and funny. She had white flour on her nose. Maya tried to wipe it off, but Lily pushed her hand away.
"Leave me alone," Lily said, but she was smiling.
"You look like a ghost," Maya teased her.
I laughed with them. It felt good to laugh. My house was always so quiet. Leo was always working or worrying about me. And now Silas
