The house is still.
No more shouting. No more glass breaking.19Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8cO0Ztk0oK
Just Angelique's soft, steady breathing beside me in bed.
I ran my fingers through her hair until her dreams swallowed her whole again. She didn't say much after Henry's outburst—just held on tighter than usual.
Now she stirs and opens her eyes slowly.
"Was that man going to hurt us?" she asks, voice small.
My chest tightens. I tuck a blanket around her, brushing a curl off her forehead.
"No, baby. He was just sad. And confused. And sometimes grown-ups act wrong when they don't know how to fix themselves."
She looks up at me, studying my face with that wise-beyond-her-years calm.
"Is he my dad?"
I pause. Exhale.19Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKl3lfHUWUS
"Yes."
She thinks for a long time.
"But he's not family, right?"
Tears sting my eyes, but I smile. "You get to choose who your family is."
She smiles too. "Then I pick you. And Tita Stacy. And Grandpa. And Lola. And maybe... maybe Mr. Ryan?"
I blink.
She yawns. "He brought cupcakes. People who bring cupcakes are nice."
I kiss her forehead. "That's a pretty good rule."
Later, after I'm sure she's asleep again, I step out to the porch.
The sky is dark velvet, scattered with stars. I sit on the steps and try to slow my thoughts.
A car pulls up quietly.
He didn't have to come back. But of course... he did.
Ryan steps out. Still in slacks, but the tie is gone. Sleeves rolled up. Tired, but steady.
"I figured you wouldn't sleep," he says, approaching.
"You figured right."
He sits beside me, not too close. Just close enough.
"Did he leave for good?"
I shrug. "They always say they will. But people like him don't disappear—they just circle until they find another crack to crawl through."
He doesn't speak. Doesn't try to fix it.
Instead, after a long silence, he says, "I was angry. When he called you broken."
My heart stutters.
He continues. "Because I've never met anyone who holds herself together the way you do. Who keeps showing up, even when the world tries to knock her off balance. That's not broken. That's... something else entirely."
I glance at him. "You really believe that?"
He turns his head just slightly—just enough to meet my eyes.
"I do."
And it's not loud. Not dramatic.19Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5uoOLOG8Uf
But something in that moment clicks. Something in me softens.
"I don't know what this is," I whisper. "But I don't want to run from it."
He nods.
"Then don't."
And we sit like that, beneath a sky full of quiet things, letting the stillness hold what words can't.
19Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGtcoIxx6Uj
