My 9 Year Old Found a Note Telling Us to Move Out Before Christmas So I Packed in Silence

physical presence more than conversation. The kitchen window was glazed with frost at the edges. The pan hissed. The air smelled like butter just at the edge of burning, sweet for one second and bitter the next. Jessica was sorting bills in her head, the freelance invoice that was three weeks overdue, the phone bill that was due on the 26th, the numbers continue reading …