*Olivia*
I trudged into the living room with one of Elio’s blocks clutched in my fist like a talisman. I wanted his room set up for if—when we got him home, but I needed a little piece of him with me to keep that certainty.
Dahlia and Gio sat across from each other in the living room, staring blankly into the distance. Plates of food sat on the coffee table in front of each of them, both untouched. I collapsed into the armchair at the short end of the coffee table. I’d done my crying, my hugging, my curling up in my son’s things as though that would be enough to summon him home. Now, I knew, I needed to be strong until it was over. That meant I needed my own seat.
The allure of Gio’s or Dahlia’s arms would be too strong for me to resist if I was within reach.
