Chapter 23 - The restored vase
Three months later, Caleb asked again.
“I want to see it.”
Why?
“I want to know if you can see the crack.”
So we went to Vanessa’s house.
First time since the incident.
I almost said no.
Then realized the house was not dangerous by architecture.
We set boundaries.
Eric came too.
Vanessa met us at the door.
No shoes rule?
Gone.
Caleb wiped his sneakers automatically.
Vanessa said:
“You can leave them on.”
He looked at me.
“Your choice.”
He took them off anyway.
The vase stood somewhere different.
Not the narrow console.
Inside a glass-front cabinet secured to the wall.
Good.
Restoration lines were nearly invisible.
Caleb stared.
“That’s it?”
“Yes.”
“It looks same.”
“Mostly.”
He leaned closer.
Vanessa said:
“You can look. Don’t touch.”
He looked at her.
Then at me.
I nodded.
“That’s a normal rule.”
He kept his hands behind his back.
For about thirty seconds.
Then lost interest.
“Do you still have magnetic tiles?”
Vanessa laughed unexpectedly.
“Yes.”
He played on the rug.
May you like
The object that had reorganized six months of family life became boring in under a minute.
Exactly what it deserved.
