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I let myself fall back against my car door with a little thud.

“And I’m pretty irritated with myself over that fact, don’t you worry.”

He walks over to stand next to me and does the same. I glance over to see an expected smile spread across his face.

“Surely not what you want to hear, but I’m so proud of her right now,” he says, beaming.

“As you should be, but… why?” I ask.

“For standing her ground. Knowing what she needs right now and not backing down from it.”

I don’t know why, but that’s what makes me start crying. I look up at the starry sky to clear the blurriness in my eyes.

“I am, too. She’s gotten a lot better at that.” I elbow his arm. “I’ll give you some credit for helping her in that regard.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I see him shake his head.

“It was all her.”

“Someone’s circumstances do a lot for their capabilities. You changed her circumstances and made her feel more capable,” I tell him.

I couldn’t do that.

“Stop sounding smart.”

“My bad. I’ll go back to being ditzy and ridiculous.”

He laughs, and steps away.

“I should go back in, but I can’t resist telling you,” he starts. “You’re like a little sister to me, Rey. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

I roll my eyes.

“Please don’t assume things aren’t going to end well.”

He puts his hands up in surrender.

“I’m not assuming. I’m just a little worried, naturally. It’s hard to imagine the two of you… your two personalities…” He shuts his mouth tightly. “I’ll stop. Sorry.”

“The personality you saw, and the one I see are completely different,” I say quietly. “I changed her circumstances.”

He nods understandingly–thoughtfully– before saying good night and turning to go back in.

42

Weeks pass. Kara meets my parents, andlovesthem. I’ve never seen her so cheery as when my mom gets her talking, andwow,do the two of themtalk.

Twice now, I’ve woken up to Kara on the phone just to find out that’s who is on the other end.Twice now, my wife has been the one to let me know that we’re going to my parent’s house for dinner.

It’s kind of nice to not have to organize it all myself. I’ve given her so many points for it.

Dahlia came home a week ago, and we’ve been doing a lot to make up for the lost time. I got to see a million pictures and videos, and I got to hear all about the family she met while she was up there. A small piece of me is jealous, wishing I could meet all the people that put these huge smiles on her face. She misses them already, and asks me when she can go back, but I know she’s glad to be home too.

Such a big vacation took a lot out of my little girl. We’ll go to the park for less than an hour and she’s yawning and ready for a nap. Must be all that hiking they did.

She’s willingly napped most days since she got back, and it blows my mind every single time. I couldn’t keep myself from joining her either, we both need to catch up on some sleep after the crazy rollercoaster our summer’s have been.

I kept her with me for a couple extra days, thanks to Caleb’s understanding. Our normal schedule was not enough, but it’s really never enough. I’ll never stop missing her when we’re apart.