She had promised herself she would tell Emily. But now that the truth sat on her table, the only thought that screamed through her was simple and selfish: If I show her this, I’ll lose her. The envelope lay unopened beside the salt shaker, its edges already worn from her fingers turning it over and over.
Days slipped by in a haze of dread. Emily’s excitement grew with each one, a cruel mirror of Clara’s fear. “Maybe I’ll finally find out if I have siblings,” Emily said one evening, her eyes bright as she scrolled through her phone. Another night, she leaned across the couch with a grin: “What if I have a whole family out there waiting for me?”