Lily stayed frozen on the edge of my bed for a long time after the sound of his car faded. Then she looked at me with tears in her eyes and asked if I really meant what I said about choosing her over anyone. Her voice cracked on the last word. I pulled her into a hug and felt her whole body shaking against mine.
I told her she’d been my priority since the day she was born, and I was sorry it took me this long to prove it. She started crying then, not the quiet tears she’d been holding back for months, but real sobbing that shook her shoulders. I held her and let her cry and told her I should have seen it sooner. She cried for what felt like hours, but was probably only 15 minutes.
When she finally pulled back, her face was blotchy and her eyes were red, but she looked lighter somehow. We stayed up until past midnight talking. She told me about all the small things I hadn’t noticed. How he’d sigh dramatically whenever she spoke at dinner. How he’d forget to save her leftovers when I worked late, even though he always saved some for himself.