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"Good" He smiled, and it made me feel weird Peter sical, like a shooting star "Now that’s one less thing I have to worry about"

"What?" I rested my head on my arms and watched hi on the concrete by his foot "I still will, I’m sure, but at least in some part of mind, I’ll know you’re safe"

He picked up a stone and tossed it off over the cliff We listened for it to hit, but we never heard a sound

"How far do you think it goes?" I leaned forward, straining to see the edge

"I have no idea But if Mae asks, it’s not that far," he said "She started freaking about Daisy falling to her death, but I think Daisy’s sh not to juain, she does eat bugs"

"It wouldn’t really be that bad if she did fall off, would it?" I whispered and felt like the worst person ever for just saying it aloud I could hear her in the tunnel, a little girl singing a song and coloring with chalk "Never mind I didn’t mean it"

"You knohat the worst part of it is?" Peter asked, still staring off at the cliff "She grows on you I know she’s an abo people and millions of defenseless cockroaches But… she spent an hour learning to braid Mae’s hair last night, and when she concentrates, her face gets all scrunched up, and she sticks her tongue out the side of her mouth" He looked over at , he shook his head

"I don’t know," he said "You had to be there I guess"

"I guess"

"I never had kids," Peter said, somewhat abruptly "Ezra did, and Mae did, obviously I can’t remember if I ever even wanted kids" He furrowed his brow "When I becahed "The sa things out, I guess"

"I’lad you don’t," I told hi mine in a way that used to take my breath away It still did a little, but I tried not to show it

"I’ with for her too" He kept his eyes on me, but I knew he meant Daisy "And I’m not totally miserable I want you to know that This isn’t what I had planned or even what I thought I ever wanted, but… I’ Mae raise Daisy, indown the sadness and relief that , I’d been afraid that Peter would never be happy again Not because I was so fabulous that I didn’t understand how he could be happy without ht he’d closed himself off to happiness That he’d been hurt one too many times, and I’d contributed to that