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

Elaine suggested lowering the rod.

We tried.

It worked.

We laughed about spending an hour solving a problem that didn’t matter much.

Then we had tea.

When she left, she hugged me.

“Call if you need anything.”

“I will.”