I cried until there was nothing left.

Not the loud kind. The kind that comes in waves, dries on your face, then starts again when the house goes quiet. I stayed in bed with the curtains half-drawn and let the day pass without me.

Servants knocked. I ignored them.

When my phone screen lit up, I scrolled through names like they belonged to strangers. Susan. John. Mara. Aunt Ileana.

Then *Maa*.

My thumb hovered. I could almost hear her voice already, calm and sharp, telling me to stop making everything about myself. I locked the phone and pressed it to my chest until the urge passed. Fresh tears came anyway....