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“Aunt Catherine” gave me a warning look, and I ducked behind my laptop.

Hayley’s face had taken over the screen, so close I could almost count her pale blond eyelashes. “So, we wanted to tell you in person, but we’ve been asked to play at Nathaniel’s!”

My mouth dropped open. “Wait,really?” Nathaniel’s was the dream when it came to underage gigs. Sure, it wasn’texactlyour audience, but the people who went there tended to be pretty open-minded when it came to music. If anything, we’d be likely to end up with a bunch of new fans who’d never heard of us.

Well, not “we,” I guessed. They. They would end up with new fans.

“Ollie, Ollie, Dylan wants you to cut the skin off his apple,” Crista said, appearing at my side out of thin air.

“I heard him. I’m just trying to talk to my friends right now.”

“Your hands are free, aren’t they?” Mom asked from across the kitchen. “Can’t you grab a fresh knife?”

“Be right back,” I said to Ryan and Hayley, but Hayley held up a hand.

“No, look, we can barely hear you. Go hold the fort. We have to practice, anyway. We’ll tell you more when we can talk properly.”

But I hadn’t even had a chance to tell them about Will. Or Collinswood. Or how Aunt Linda was. “Oh. Oh, okay. Sure. We’ll Skype soon, then, I guess?”

“Yeah, when we’re all free. Soon.”

I wrapped up the call, then dutifully removed the offending apple peel, to Dylan’s delight.

Over by the stove, Mom hovered behind Dad, helpfully critiquing his cooking choices. “There’s some more room in the skillet,” she pointed out, leaning against the counter. “Why don’t you put it all in? It’ll speed things up.”

“Gordon says if I put too much meat in the pan it’ll cook unevenly.”

“Well, God forbid you disobey Gordon.”

“Woe betide the fool that tries, Catherine.”

Outside, a car engine rumbled up the driveway. Crista and Dylan perked up as one, and, abandoning their snacks, sprinted to the front door, with me following after them.“Mama’s here, Mama’s here, Mama’s here.”

Aunt Linda had barely walked through the door when she was barreled over by two pint-sized missiles. “Ooff! Oh my gosh, I was only gone for a few hours.” She laughed, pulling them in for a hug.

Tonight, she looked weaker than usual. She’d lost her thick black hair a while ago, and while I was used to seeing her bald, tonight she still wore the paisley scarf she wrapped around her head when she went out. Weirdly, the scarf reminded me how much things had changed more than the hair loss did. Maybe it was because Linda had been so anti-headwear for longer than I’d been alive. I couldn’t even picture her in a sun hat, or beanie, or anything.

“They’re attention-starved,” I said. “We’ve been neglecting them.”

“I know, that’s why I leave them here. It makes me look better by comparison, and they’reso much more grateful to have me,” she said, poking the kids playfully in their stomachs as she spoke. They shrieked with laughter.

“How was it?” Mom asked as we entered the kitchen.

“Oh, you know. It’s a hospital. Glad it exists, but alwaysgladder to be leaving it.” Aunt Linda lifted her handbag and nodded toward the living room. “Just let me put my things down, I’ll be two seconds.”

“I hope you’re hungry,” Mom said to her retreating back.

Aunt Linda’s voice was bright and cheerful as she replied. “To be honest, Cathy, I don’t remember what hunger feels like.”

Mom rolled her eyes, then caught sight of me slumping back down at the dining room table. “How’s the salad coming along?”

“Oh, fine.” I reached for the peeler again.

“Sorry we interrupted your call.”

I nodded, not trusting myself to reply without getting all emotional again. I’d just really wanted to talk to Ryan and Hayley. So much had been uprooted. I just wanted something that felt normal.

Mom pushed down on my hand to get me to let go of the peeler. “Ollie, you need to relax. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to talk with your friends. Everything will be fine. I want you to practice some mindfulness.”