Proudly, we stood in the cocoon of the new décor, born from our magic. Even Kat had stayed right till the end, sitting on the floor in the corner, staring at her curtain work. I got us all some apple juice to celebrate, because the weak tea was our daily suffering, not our celebratory beverage. I lifted my plastic glass in the air, ‘I’d like to propose a toast.’ They all followed suit. ‘No matter how today turns out, I want you all to know that we were a success for getting all this awesomeness accomplished to revamp our little nest here. Regardless of what Josh and his company decide, we know that we did everything …’ My words caught in my throat, ‘Everything in our power to keep going. We busted our balls to stay alive. To us.’ ‘To us!’ Their voices resounded as one, apart from Kat’s, who improvised with, ‘And our balls.’ Harry and I chuckled, but Kat didn’t even crack a smile. ‘I’m late for my session with Lydia,’ she hummed in her monotone apathy and made her way to the office down the hall.
