Andy did not cry. He had decided a long time ago that he was not going to cry in front of anyone who was not Mama. But he sat in the dark with his palm against the wall, and it helped, a little, to feel someone else on the other side.
Nicole came later. She was not as easy. She was loud in her head, bright and jumbled, like a box of crayons dumped on the floor. But the first time she spoke to him, she said, Kuya says you're okay. So I'm going to be nice to you. Only a little.
Andy laughed out loud, and it was the first time he had laughed in a while.
Andrew, Nicole thought, is going to hate me.
He won't, Andy thought. He just doesn't like people fast.
Good, Nicole said. Me neither.
Andrew
The fire started in the middle of the night, in the back room of the confectionery where the ovens were.
