Chapter 4

Gertrude's eyes settled on the painting in my hands.

It was my favorite one.

The rest would go into the suitcase tomorrow with everything else,

but this one I wanted to carry close.

"Miss Fox paints? May I see it?"

I stepped back and refused outright.

"Sorry. I don't like people looking at my paintings."

I thought Gertrude would let it go,

but instead her eyes went red as she turned to Hubert.

"Hubert, is Miss Fox always this forceful? No wonder she just wants to keep you away from water."

"But if it's like this, when are you ever going to get better?"

Hubert heard her out, lifted his eyes to me, and let out a soft sigh.

"Ellie, let Gigi see it. She's only curious."

"Didn't you used to love showing people your paintings?"

Before I could say anything,

Gertrude's eyes went redder still. "Miss Fox, you like letting people see your paintings. You just don't want me to see them?"

"You really can't stand me, can you?"

"But all I wanted was for Hubert to get better…"

I watched Gertrude finish her performance in silence,

then turned to leave, only for Hubert to catch my hand.

"Ellie, be good. Let Gigi have a look."

With that, he pulled the painting out of my hand

and held it out to Gertrude.

Gertrude spread it open on the table.

It was a boy and a girl making a wish under a night sky.

Looking at it, I thought back to that time.

We were still young then,

too young to know a shooting star can't really grant a wish.

All I knew was that a meteor shower was coming, and you had to make a wish,

so I pulled Hubert out into the garden with me.

The moment I opened my eyes, he was watching me, grinning.

"Ellie, what did you wish for?"

"I wished we could be together forever…"

I rushed to cover his mouth. "Don't say it out loud. If you say it, it won't come true."

The truth was, my wish had been

for Hubert to get better.

Just as I was lost in the memory, Gertrude let out a startled cry.

Her hand knocked over the cup beside her,

and the tea soaked through the paper fast.

Gertrude apologized without stopping. "Miss Fox, I'm so sorry…"

Fumbling to clean it up, she pressed down too hard,

and the already-soaked painting tore straight into pieces.

I shoved her away.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

Gertrude wept prettily. "I'm sorry, Miss Fox, I really didn't mean to…"

Hubert's eyes fell on the girl's face in the painting.

"Ellie, Gigi didn't mean it…"

My hand stopped where it was gathering up the painting,

my fingers landing right on Hubert's face in the picture.

Say the wish out loud, and it really doesn't come true.

I stood, dropped every torn piece of the painting into the trash,

and turned back to my room.

When Hubert came knocking, I was packing.

"Ellie, don't be angry anymore."

He knocked for a long time. I never opened the door.

After a while, the knocking faded and stopped.

I finished packing everything and lay back down on the bed.

I didn't sleep all night.

Hubert and Gertrude left early.

When I came out of the bedroom, the roses in the living room had, at some point, been replaced with lisianthus.

I gave them a single glance,

went to the studio and gathered all my paintings, then dragged my suitcase out without looking back.

…

Hubert and Gertrude stood at the rafting entrance,

watching the churning water,

and all at once he remembered the day his parents drowned, the fear spreading endlessly through him.

Gertrude pulled him onto the raft with her,

and when the waves crashed over them,

the last thing in Hubert's mind before he lost consciousness was Eleanor's face.

When he woke on the hospital bed,

Hubert paid no attention at all to Gertrude beside him and got home as fast as he could.

He wanted to see Eleanor.

But the moment he pushed the door open, the place was empty.

Everything that had been Eleanor's was gone.

The blood drained completely from Hubert's face.