into exactly the kind of young woman she had always seemed destined to become.
Careful.
Observant.
Thoughtful.
She listened before speaking.
She watched before acting.
And somewhere over the years, she developed Emily’s laugh.
Not intentionally.
It simply emerged.
Whenever Lily laughed without holding back, I heard her sister.
Sometimes it comforted me.
Sometimes it hurt.
Usually both.
The party ended around ten.
Lily went upstairs around eleven, exhausted but happy.
I stayed in the kitchen washing dishes.
Dad walked in.
The moment I saw his face, I knew something
