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The other gift was about the size of a tablet of paper, and slim Lexi opened it carefully and lifted the lid

On the top was a four-color brochure for an apartment complex in Po, bold type Beloas a class catalog froe

“That’s Barbara’s apart about your future, and I thought, hell’s bells, why couldn’t you coot two bedrooms, and her and I have shared a bedrooo to classes during the day You wouldn’t have to pay any rent at all ”

Lexi looked across the table at this wohtened “It looks great ”

“I shoulda known you wouldn’t want beauty school Barbara told e College,” Eva said the word reverently “We’re so proud of you And you need to get to know your other aunt Her kids and grandkids are dying to ot your boy to think about, but he’s goin’ off somewhere with his sister So I wanted you to know you had me to think about, too You aren’t alone anymore, Alexa Not unless you want to be Now, let’s eat these donuts I got to be at work soon Make a wish and blow out your candle ”

A wish

Lexi stared into the s above the twisted blue candle

There was only one wish, and it wouldn’t come true, but she made it anyway

“Good luck, Lexi I hope your birthday wish comes true ”

After that, they ate their donuts, toasted her birthday again with glasses of milk, and went their separate ways—Eva to a Saturday shift at Walmart, Lexi to the ice cream shop For the rest of the day, Lexi was in constant motion On a sunny weekend like this, the shop was crazy busy

She didn’t slon again until evening, when Zach and Mia picked her up from work

Lexi did her best to be cheerful around both of thehed and joked and talked at the dinner table, but when Jude brought out a cake with candles, her fragile veneer cracked a little and it took willpower not to cry or run away

Next year, she would celebrate her birthday by herself Mia and Zach would be in sunny Southern California, living the college dream She wanted to be happy for the the future that lay like a stor in touch and keeping their lives braided together, and their intentions would be as true as their eh When she told theed her not to go so far away They wanted to see her on school breaks

Easy for them to ask But she wanted that, too

“What’s it gonna be like?” Mia asked that night as the three of theether on blankets on the beach It was the first time one of them had dared to ask the question aloud