At the door, Olivia turned suddenly. “You were so kind to me that night,” she said softly. “Not everyone is, to a single mother.” The words caught Elise off guard. They contained simple gratitude, yet were heavy with memory.
Elise smiled, masking the chill that crept up her spine. “You’re stronger than you think,” she said. But as Olivia disappeared down the hallway, Elise couldn’t shake the feeling that something fragile still trembled beneath the surface calm, something that hadn’t yet been spoken.