“That's your mom, right?" Pathik smiled. "She looks nicer than she did when she was dragging you away the other night.”

“She's gone. Been gone for ages. They split up right after you left. That's why the grass out front started growing again.""He's got a new girlfriend?" she said quietly. "Thank god. You must be happy.""Yeah. He does. It's a relief. She's a lot nicer. But then, your average angry snake is nicer than Fiona. I'm sure she's happier wherever she is now, burning orphans or whatever she does with her time.”

“It made her think that it was curious how much nicer a person looked when he smiled. She had not thought of it before.”

“But in that moment when my brother took the field, all that washed away, and everyone was proud... I looked up at my dad, and he was smiling. I looked at my mom, and she was smiling even though she was nervous about my brother getting hurt, which was strange because it was a VCR tape of an old game, and she knew he didn't get hurt.”

“She smiled and feigned enthusiasm, although she cared little for the game. Sometimes that's what you did for the people you loved.”

“That's right. Carrington didn't want to marry the likes of me. He had to be dragged kicking and screamingto the negotiation table.”“Did you enjoy the dragging?” He glanced down at her.“Yes, I rather did,” she confessed. “It was amusing threatening to strip his house bare to the last plank on the floor and the last spoon in the kitchen.”“My parents are convinced of your grief.” She heard the smile in his voice. “They said tears streameddown your face at his funeral.”“For nearly three years of hard work down the drain, I cried like a bereaved mother.”