24.

 

Marcus looked out the window transfixed as they passed through a layer of billowy white clouds to make their landing. Sadie's heart tightened as the wheels touched the runway. The plane rocked and rumbled before coming to a stop.

Noticing the tension in her face, Kevin reached out and took her hand. "Here we go," he said.

They decided to stay in a hotel just a few blocks away from Gloria's building. Once they'd dropped off their bags they walked to her place.

Fall was Sadie's favorite season up north. The air seemed so crisp and clean even in the polluted city. Orange, red, and gold leaves clung desperately to the trees that lined the streets.

Marcus hummed and held Sadie's hand as they maneuvered through the crowded streets. It was six o'clock and commuters rushed down the sidewalks wrapped in dark fall coats.

"I like it here," Marcus said.

"So do I," Sadie said.

Kevin looked over at both of them. "I hope that doesn't mean you're thinking about staying." He forced a laugh for Marcus's sake.

Marcus looked up at him with creases between his thread-thin eyebrows. "Are you mad at me?"

Kevin slowed his stride. The commuters rushed around them like water. It was as if their family was in a different time dimension than the city around them. "I'm not angry with you. Why do you think I'm angry with you?"

Marcus shrugged. "I don't know." He bit his lip and reached up grabbing Kevin's hand. "When you went away ... maybe it was because of the tree."

Kevin looked at Sadie as if to ask if she'd told Marcus that he'd left them. Sadie shook her head and shrugged. Then Kevin smiled and squeezed Marcus's hand in his. "No. That had nothing to do with the tree or anything you did. I just had some things I needed to think about alone. Don't you ever feel like you need some time alone?"

After thinking for a moment Marcus said, "No."

Kevin and Sadie both laughed. "When you're older you'll know what I'm talking about," Kevin said.

The people on the streets thinned as they approached Gloria's block. The sun had gone down but the city was so brightly lit that they barely knew it was night. They walked hand in hand. Marcus's pulsed with heat that seemed to run up Sadie's arm. She wondered if Kevin could feel it too. They were a family. They were connected. They were connected always. Even if they were not biologically related they had something deeper. Marcus was hers and so was Kevin. They would always be hers.