A girl appeared on the staircase.
Then another.
His hands shook.
From upstairs, a door opened.
A girl appeared on the staircase.
She stared at Luke.
Then Emma ran upstairs again.
Luke stood.
Neither spoke.
Then Emma ran upstairs again.
Luke’s face crumpled.
“I knew it.”
Emma came running back carrying a battered stuffed rabbit.
But footsteps thundered overhead.
Emma came running back carrying a battered stuffed rabbit.
Luke stopped breathing.
She held it up.
“You gave me Mr. Buttons.”
Luke covered his mouth.
He dropped to his knees and wrapped both arms around her.
Emma ran straight into him.
He dropped to his knees and wrapped both arms around her.
I looked away, and I didn’t approach. The moment belonged to them, after all.
Their relationship didn’t repair itself that afternoon.
It started again.
Luke had spent years believing family meant choosing one person over another.
