Lily nodded.
“Your father helped people quietly too. Apparently, you inherited that part.”
A tiny smile appeared.
Then I continued.
“The three thousand dollars I promised toward your car stays saved. When you earn your portion again, we’ll start shopping.” CompareCar Insurance
“Okay.”
“And next time you decide somebody needs work boots, you tell me first.”
She laughed.
That evening, Lily sat at the kitchen table scrolling through used-car listings again.
Michael’s old HOME keychain rested beside her phone.
Still empty.
I looked over.
“Starting again?”
“Yep.”
“Any regrets?”
She thought for a moment.
“I regret that cars cost four thousand dollars.” CompareCar Insurance
I laughed.
Then she looked at the photo she had taken of Mrs. Patel’s index card.
Michael’s sixteen names on the front.
Her seventeen on the back.
She tapped the screen once.
“I don’t regret seventeen.”
I slid Michael’s empty keychain a little closer to her.
