Page 97 of The Gathered Fragments of Us
"Sounds like a plan. Maybe tonight, we can play before dinner."
"Yes!"
Silently, I finished up with her back, doing one last check to make sure I didn't miss any spots from her neck, even down her arms. The backs of her arms were almost lily white—like I said, she's going to have interesting tan lines.
"I'm really glad you're home." I capped the jar of body butter and sat back to admire my handiwork. "There. That should help a lot. You'll want to reapply the aloe a few times today, and definitely tonight before bed."
"Will you help me reapply?"
"Of course. We should probably do this again tomorrow morning too, before you go back to school. Just to make sure everything's healing well."
Macy nodded, then carefully pulled her shirt back on. "Felicity?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you think people at school know what happened?" she asked quietly—nervously.
The question caught me off guard, and I could hear the vulnerability beneath it. I set the jar down in the linen closet and turned to give her my full attention.
"I don't know, honey. Maybe some people do, maybe they don't. Are you worried about it?"
She nodded, picking at the hem of her shirt. "What if they ask me questions? What if no one wants to talk to me anymore? I haven't talked to any of my friends from school in the last week. What if they think I'm weird or different now? "
"First of all, you're not weird or different. You're the same amazing kid you were before any of this happened." I moved to sit beside her on the edge of the tub. "But if people do ask questions, you don't have to tell them anything you don't want to. You can try changing the subject, or you can tell them pieces of what happened if you want to—it's completely up to you."
"What if I don't want to tell anyone but they keep asking?"
"Then you walk away if you want, you can find a teacher or go to the office. You can always call me or your dad. We'll come get you if you need us to."
Macy looked up at me with relief. "You'd really do that?"
"Without hesitation. Macy, you never have to handle difficult things alone, okay? You, your dad and me—we're a team."
She was quiet for a moment, processing. "I think... I think most kids probably don't know. It's not like it was on the news or anything, right?"
"I don't think so. And even if some people do know, that doesn't define you. You're still the same they knew before it all happened."
That earned me a small smile. "They'll probably ask me about my cast."
"You're probably right. You can just say you broke it when you fell. We bought all those markers too. So, everyone can sign it. So, maybe bring the markers and have them set out so people can pick whatever colors they want to use, right?
She stood up carefully, testing how the shirt felt against her treated skin. "This feels so much better. You really do have magic potions."
"Years of trial and error. And a few minor kitchen disasters while I was learning."
"Kitchen disasters?"
"Let's just say melted beeswax and stovetops don't always mix well. I may have accidentally created a waxy volcano once."
Macy burst into giggles. "Did Dad freak out?"
"He was surprisingly calm about me essentially waxing half the kitchen. Though he did suggest smaller batches after that."
"That's smart."
I nodded sagely, "He has his moments."
As I went to stand, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. Pulling it out, I read:
