Chapter 18

• A week passed. I got wistful sometimes, when Veronica went to work, I slept over at my brother's, occupying his room, moving things around, living in two houses. My brother didn't mind; he was glad I wasn't with them. He didn't say their names, didn't talk about them, and I didn't remind him.
• "How's Richtman?" We both had the day off, or rather, I had the day off, and my brother just got home from work on time. We were sitting on the couch, watching a TV show. I had broken the 'no food in the living room' rule so many times that my brother had accepted it. We were eating chips and drinking beer. I finally asked the question that had been on my mind for a long time.
• "As soon as he was released, I rushed to work," my brother answered. That made me feel warm. He had recovered and was already working. I hesitated to tell him right away, but I knew I wouldn't be able to later.