His jaw ticks, and I can tell he wants to storm after her, drag her back, and make her talk.
It’s what I want, too.
“She needs space,” Greyson says. He’s seen as many of her darker days as I have. She needs the quiet to process before we come in and press her about her feelings.
Adam shakes his head immediately.
“No. Not space.” His voice is low, sharp. “She doesn’t need us pulling back right now. She needs to know we’re here. Always.”
He exhales, shoulders tight. Adam’s cocky facade is cracking.
Maybe I misjudged his intentions toward her.
“But…she needs her sister first. We’ll get our turns.”
Greyson whistles under his breath, a half-smile tugging at his mouth. “Our turns, huh?”
Adam doesn’t flinch. “Yeah. Our turns.”
For once, I don’t feel like arguing. It’s probably a good idea to let Daisy unravel part of that trauma.
But none of them know her like I do.
I walk through the festival, seeing Drew’s touch everywhere.
The new structure of the booths to create clear paths through so that everyone can get equal space and attention.
The decorations she and Greyson worked on last week. Ones that I helped bring and set up.
She’s missing the reveal of Alice’s sculpture. It’s the thing she’s been the most excited about seeing. I’ll have to bring her back to see it in the morning, if she’ll let me.
I meander, my insides churning harder with every minute she’s absent. All this work, and she doesn’t even get to enjoy it.
Instead, she’s probably curled up in Daisy’s bed, twisting her hands together to keep her tears at bay. I hate not being there for her.
As the twinkling lights start blinking out one strand at a time, my mind whirs with calculations.
What kind of things could Adam, Greyson, and I come up with to make her job a permanent one.
To keep her here in a way that gives her purpose.
Because I’m certain my wanting her to stay isn’t enough. It wasn’t last time.
Maybe we need to let her go if that’s her decision.
Because calculating ways to keep her here doesn’t seem right.
It’s selfish.
She’s not some project to fix.
Some customer to soothe.
She’s Drew. My favorite person in this world.
I don’t want to stand in the way of what she wants.
Even if I desperately want her not to go.
