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Kiera exhaled sharply. “Mom, Dad… what are you doing?”

“We’re blessing the chickens and ducks!” her mom said brightly, shaking a small brass bell with sharp, purposeful movements. “The moonlight helps them lay healthier eggs. Tonya says it’s all about energy alignment.”

Kiera groaned, shaking her head. “Of course it is.”

Eliza and Quinn were already at the coop, showering Chiquitita, Her Highness, and all of their feathered friends with adoration. The girls were so lucky to have this connection to their eccentric grandparents, and Kiera felt a small wave of relief and comfort knowing she had such a phenomenal support system.

She kissed them both goodnight, promising to call in the morning. Then, as she walked back to the car, a knot formed in her chest, thinking about how Maggie didn’t have the same kind of support. Well, she could be that for her friend, then, the same as Izzy had. Her hands gripped the wheel, but she didn’t start the engine.

Instead, she pulled out her phone. She hesitated for only a second before calling Maggie. It’d been almost a month now since Maggie’s mom had died, and she still sometimes wondered if calling randomly was intrusive or helpful.

Maggie picked up quickly. “Well hello, Kiera,” Maggie’s voice no longer held the raw strain she’d been used to over the past few weeks.

“Well hello, gorgeous. Just checking in. How are you?”

“Better, actually,” Maggie said. “I’m doing okay today. My therapist said we can go down to just one session a week now.”

“Look at you, winning therapy,” A quiet smile tugged at Kiera’s lips.

Maggie snorted. “Yeah, well, apparently she wouldn’t agree to give me a trophy for my achievement.”

“I didn’t realize your therapist was such a monster,” Kiera joked.

“Speaking of monsters, is it bad that I’m already fantasizing about a solo vacation? I just want to lie on a beach somewhere in absolute silence.” Maggie sighed wistfully.

“Not bad at all. You deserve all the beaches and quiet and relaxation,” Kiera encouraged.

Maggie took a deep breath. “I might do that. You guys should come down soon for a visit. I could use the distraction. And the wine.”

“Definitely. We’ll plan something.”

Unspoken things filled the heavy pause. Then Maggie sighed. “How’re you and Izzy?”

Kiera drummed her fingers on her steering wheel, still staring at the front of her parent’s garage. “Oh, um. Did she call you?”

“No, I’m just making sure I don’t find everything out via group chat,” Maggie said.

Kiera chewed her bottom lip. “We’re just still taking things slow. I’m not actually sure if she knows what she’s getting into. She… um… She said she loves me.”

Maggie released an exaggerated noise, half-groan, half-sigh. “Oh my god, are you serious?”

“What?”

“Kiera, you’re being a complete idiot.”

Kiera choked. “Uh, thanks.”

“I’m serious.” Maggie’s voice softened slightly, but the exasperation was still there. “She loves you. And you love her. It’s obvious to literally everyone except you two.”

The words landed hard, not because they were surprising, but because Kiera had run out of ways to pretend they weren’t true.

She did love Izzy.

She had been trying to be responsible, to not let herself want too much, to be realistic in what it meant to be with someone like her. But hadn’t that been her problem all along? Hadn’t she spent too much of her life holding back, second-guessing, waiting for the right time?

And all this time, Izzy had been standing there — not walking away, saying the hard thing.

She thought about the night before, curled on the couch — the comfort of Izzy’s arms around her, the unspoken promise in every touch, the way Izzy had been trying to tell her without pushing, without demanding anything in return. She had given Kiera space, had let her set the pace, but she had been there, waiting, willing to take the risk if Kiera just said the words.