As the endless stream of mourners came and went, they were able to share memories of her father together. Although they were so tired that they felt like their bodies would collapse, Lily and her mother believed this was their duty. They wanted her father to walk his final path with as many people as possible.
"Hello."
That man appeared at a time when the mourners had stopped coming: 3 AM. The unfamiliar man came on the last day before her father's cremation. Lily's mother looked pale with exhaustion. Lily looked up with sunken eyes and stood up from her mother's side.
"Hello."
Lily thought he was just one of the people who had heard the news later than most. But it all changed when the man, whose buzz-cut hair was peppered with white strands, gave her a smile.
"Baby, have you been well?"
The moment she heard his gravelly voice, her throat closed up and a shiver ran down her spine. Lily reflexively stuck her back up against the wall and gasped.
