It felt heavier than before.

Not because of the paper.

Because I finally understood what Sarah had tried to give us.

Security.

A home.

The ability to raise the children without fearing that one unexpected bill would take away everything.

And Oliver was treating that gift as a resource available to settle his own debts.

I drove home in silence.

At a traffic light, I thought of the day I met him.

He’d been carrying mulch toward my car.