At 3 A.M., My Brother Dragged Me Out of My Bedroom While Dad Laughed—He Had No Idea What the Smoke Detector Had Recorded

I sat up.

Waited.

Nothing happened.

The door remained closed.

I lay back down.

The phone stayed on the nightstand.

Face down.

For the first time in months, I didn’t reach for it.

EPILOGUE — FOUR MINUTES FAST

I still own the blue binder.