Soren lets himself drift into the silence of the room.
A thousand thoughts cross his mind, while a light rain taps softly against the windowpane.
He adjusts the pillow, then rests one cheek in the palm of his hand.
He looks at Kai, lying on the bed with his back turned toward him.
“Are you still awake?” he asks quietly, even though he doesn’t really expect an answer.
Kai murmurs something.
“Mm… what do you want…?”
His voice is thick, half-asleep.
Soren hesitates for a moment.
“What did you mean this morning, at school. When you said: that’s your answer…”
Kai pulls the blanket higher, almost covering his head completely.
He stays silent for a moment.
Then he says:
“Who knows.”
The rain grows heavier.
A faint whisper of wind slips through the cracks in the window.
“Iris,” Kai murmurs, “more than any of us… she’s the one who never says anything.”
“But she still makes everything clear.”
Soren listens.
He nods slowly.
His arm goes numb and, little by little, he lets his head sink back into the pillow.
He turns onto his other side, his back facing Kai now.
“I don’t remember anything from the funeral,” he says softly.
“But I do remember Mrs. Flores’s screams.”
For a moment, the air in the room seems to shift.
“Do you want to remember?” Kai asks, his eyes fixed on the ceiling.
Soren doesn’t answer right away.
The air is still now.
The rain has stopped making any sound.
His eyelids feel heavy.
They begin to close.
“Mom took Iris in with us… and that’s eno—”
Kai lets out a faint half-smile.
“Good night, Soren.”
ns216.73.216.10da2
and then Add to home screen.