Dinner ended with the stew pot scraped clean and the table half cleared. Mom stacked the plates and let out a huge yawn. "I'm done for the night, kids! Work tomorrow, and you know how early they make me start. Leila, make yourself at home!"
"Goodnight." Leila said warmly. Mom's bedroom door clicked shut down the hall, and the kitchen went quiet.
Leila gathered the heavy stew pot against her chest and turned toward Alex with a soft, helpless smile. "Alex, would you carry this for me? It's so heavy~"
"Sure." He took it from her, and her fingers lingered over his hands a moment longer than they needed to.
At the sink, Rose scrubbed a bowl with her smile gone stiff. Janeth stood beside her drying glasses, her eyes sliding sideways every few seconds, her lower lip caught between her teeth.
Liza floated above the fridge with her hands behind her head, grinning down at them like she'd bought tickets.
