Back at home, I placed the casserole on the counter and stood in the kitchen. Nancy’s rainbow magnets still decorated the refrigerator. Her shoes rested by the door, toes pointed outward like she might dash inside at any second.
I began speaking aloud, unable to bear the silence.
“Did you see how many sunflowers they brought, Nance? You would have liked that.”
The kettle’s whistle startled me. I poured tea, only to realize I had prepared two cups out of habit.
My phone rang. For a second, I let myself hope — foolishly — that it might be my mother, ready to end the silence between us.
It was Rosie.
Her voice sounded bright and forced. It didn’t belong in my house today — too cheerful, too ordinary — like laughter echoing down a hospital corridor.
“Cass, you sound tired. I wanted to let you know we moved the housewarming to today. The weather was too perfect to pass up. You know how hard it is to get everyone together.”
Hearing her voice made my fingers go numb around the phone, remembering how she had rushed me out the door a week earlier — “Take Maple, it’s faster, Cassie” — before I had even finished packing Nancy’s snack.
“Today… was Nancy’s funeral.”
There was a pause, as though the words hadn’t registered, and then she continued anyway.
“Cassie, this is my first home. You know how much this means to me. People have already brought gifts. You can’t possibly expect me to postpone everything for —”
“For my daughter?”
She let out a sigh. “You always make things so dramatic. Nancy is gone. Are you jealous that I’m finally getting something nice?”
My grip tightened. “Jealous?”
She went on. “I didn’t come because I couldn’t. I had people counting on me. Can’t you just be happy for your big sister for once? I’m finally building something.”
“I buried my child today, Rosie.”
Her tone grew colder. “And I bought my first home. Are you going to keep bringing up Nancy every time something good happens to someone else?”
My knees gave way, and I lowered myself into a kitchen chair, clutching the table’s edge.
“Is Mom there?” I asked softly.
“She was. She brought chocolate cake and left after lunch. Everyone’s been asking about you, by the way. Wondering if you’ll stop by.”
I swallowed hard. “Maybe I will,” I heard myself say.
Rosie sounded relieved. “Good. Just try to be positive, okay?”
continue to the next page.”
