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"Baby," I said, tapping on the door with ive ainst the door "You can’t keep doing this to yourself I thinkup!" she snapped

"No Maybe try a different avenue"

"We can’t afford a different avenue," she said Her voice was even quieter than it had been She didn’t want to ure so out"

After a few moments of silence, the door clicked, and Calossed over, and red blotches dotted her face She was never more beautiful, and all I wanted to do was hold her, but she wouldn’t let me She would pretend her heart wasn’t broken to keepas she always did--no matter how many times I’d told her it was okay to cry

I touched her cheek, but she pulled away, her painted sh to kiss rieve"

"You can grieve out here, baby doll"

She shook her head "No, I can’t I needed to take a moment for myself"

"Because otherwise, you’re worried aboutinto a real one "I’ve tried to change I can’t"

I brought her into ht "I wouldn’t want you to I loveone side of the of the doorjath, platinum blond hair cascaded in waves fro her sadness seelistened, feeling every disappointment, every setback as deeply as we did because she was family, too By chance and by blood, whether she knew it or not

As I watched her lean the delicate features of her oval face against the wooden trihbor and little buddy since she could walk, was adopted, and soical mother had fallen in love with my older brother Taylor als By chance, I’d helped raise my niece--involved in her life even more than my brother or sister-in-law

Ca away fro away the ser than it had been since she was a girl, grazing the middle of her back and the same hue as Olive’s, with a shaved patch just above her ear to keep it ‘edgy’ I’d just redone the tat on her fingers--the first tattoo I’d ever done for her, and her first tattoo ever It read Baby Doll, the nicknaiven her early in our relationship, and it had somehow stuck As hard as she tried not to fit in, Camille was a classic beauty The name fit her then just as it did now

"I’h "We’re okay"

She walked over to the doorway to give Olive a quick hug and then tightened the folded navy blue handkerchief she was using as a headband She sniffed, the pain visibly fading away and disappearing My as a badass

"Caain next etting harder to get hi the new baby …" I trailed off, waiting for the inevitable hurt in Camille’s eyes

She walked over, cuppedat me like that? Do you really think it bothers me?"

"Maybe … maybe if you’d married him … you’d have one of your own by now"

"I don’t want one of my own I want our baby Yours anda lump rise inrelaxed and happy She still had hope