Afterward, Nora kept staring at all the places where she had existed before someone decided she should disappear.
Later, I found her sitting on her bed beside the folded yellow dress.
“I failed you,” I said. “I saw pieces and kept choosing peace. I thought avoiding conflict would protect you. Instead, it gave Vanessa room to hurt you.”
Nora looked down.
“I thought maybe you didn’t notice because she was right.”
I took her hand.
“She was never right. Not once.”
“What happens now?”
“Vanessa does not return until she apologizes without excuses and restores every photograph. If she never does, the boundary remains.”
Nora leaned against me, and I held her.
A moment later, Noah entered carrying the beach photograph.
“I need one final picture for my project,” he said. “But Nora gets to choose.”
In the image, Nora stood between us beneath the Florida sun, laughing with bare arms and relaxed shoulders. She was not hiding behind anyone.
