Silence was not the same as refusal.
Lily had been repeating that to herself for days. She sat on the edge of the couch with her legs tucked under her, staring at her phone. The screen was dark.
If Aunt Arianne wanted to say no, she would have said it.
Lily knew that. Aunt Arianne always said what she meant. She wasn't like other grown-ups who smiled and said things would be fine when they wouldn't.
"It's been nine days," Lily told Leo.
Leo sat on the floor with his board in his lap. He looked at her, then wrote. He held it up.
"Eight."
Lily grabbed the calendar and turned it toward him. "Nine. Nine if you count the day we asked."
Leo blinked. Then he nodded. He didn't try to write anything else. Counting depended on where you started waiting. That was what he believed.
Their Uncle Franz was busy these days. So they stayed with Grandma and Grandpa. There was nothing else to do. Just wait.
"She didn't say no," Lily said. She wanted to hear it out loud.
