I watched her go, hoping we’d all just taken a small step toward something healthier.
51
ELEANOR
When we pulled back up to the duplex, I thought we had the wrong address.
Cars were lined up along the curb. The front yard was crowded with people carrying lamps, boxes, and half-assembled furniture. Someone was hauling a couch up the steps, laughing as it nearly took them out.
“What . . . ?” I breathed.
I got out of the car and just stood there, staring.
Mel spotted me and waved. “Surprise! I put out a call that you were moving and needed some furniture.”
“Mel,” I said weakly.
Belle came up behind her, grinning. “I brought a bed and a dresser. You deserve a real bedroom.”
Robin was wrestling a dining table through the door. “This one’s solid. It’s survived three moves already.”
Someone else had a bookshelf. Another had a rug. There was a pile of stuffed animals and art supplies that Ava immediately zeroed in on.
I felt my eyes sting.
Belle crouched in front of Ava. “Come on, kiddo. Let’s get you into your new room.”
Ava took her hand, already smiling.
I watched them go, heart so full it almost hurt.
I wasn’t just moving.
I was being carried.
Alex came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, pressing a soft kiss to my temple.
“I can’t believe this,” I whispered.
He smiled against my hair. “They’re pretty incredible.”
And as I looked around at all the people showing up for us. They were laughing, lifting, making space for my family in their lives. I knew he was right.
I caught Belle as she came back down the stairs.
“You didn’t have to do all this,” I said, gesturing at the chaos of furniture and boxes and people.
She waved it off. “It’s no problem. I’m downsizing anyway. I just moved my dad into assisted living.” Then she smiled at me, soft and sincere. “And besides, you’re one of us now. This is what friends do. We show up for each other.”
I wrapped my arms around Belle in a tight hug.
I’d found my place. I’d found my people.
Later that night, Alex and I were in my new apartment, music playing low and soft as I unpacked boxes in the kitchen. Plates went into cupboards. Mugs lined up on the counter. Ordinary, beautiful things finding their place.
Leo and Ava ran back and forth between the two halves of the duplex, laughing like this had always been their home, like there had never been a time when it wasn’t.
I paused with a stack of bowls in my hands and just watched them for a moment.
