Rose pushed open the apartment door with her shoulder, the faint smell of rain-soaked concrete clinging to her jacket.
The place was small—two bedrooms, a narrow living room that doubled as a dining area—but it was theirs.
No echoes from the old house. No reminders on every wall.
"Mom? Ethan?" she called softly.
From the kitchen came the clatter of a pot and her mother's voice.
"In here, sweetie."
Rose dropped her backpack by the couch and walked in.
Her mom, Elena, stood at the stove stirring something that smelled like tomato sauce with too much garlic—the comfort meal she always made when things felt unsteady.
Elena's hair was pulled into a messy bun, sleeves rolled up, a small smile on her face when she saw Rose.
"How was school?" Elena asked, wiping her hands on a dish towel.
Rose shrugged.
"Fine. Same as yesterday."
She didn't mention the library.
Or Jade.
Some things felt too fragile to say out loud yet.
Ethan appeared in the doorway, fifteen and all limbs, hoodie zipped to his chin even though the apartment was warm.
He'd grown two inches since the move, or at least it felt that way.
He grabbed an apple from the bowl and bit into it loudly.
"Any fights today?" he asked Rose, smirking around the bite.
She rolled her eyes.
"No. You?"
"Nah. Boring math class. Teacher keeps calling me 'Ethan from Florida' like I'm a tourist."
Elena laughed quietly, but it didn't reach her eyes.
She turned back to the stove.
"Dinner in ten. Set the table?"
Rose nodded and started pulling plates from the cabinet.
The routine was the same every night: plates, forks, glasses of water.
It grounded her.
After everything—the arguments back home, the slammed doors, her dad's voice rising louder each time until it wasn't just words anymore—the small rituals kept her steady.
They'd left Florida because staying wasn't safe.
Not physically, not always.But emotionally, it had cracked something in all of them.
Her dad stayed behind—promises of visits that hadn't happened yet.
Elena packed the car one weekend while he was at work, drove north with two kids and three suitcases, found this apartment through a friend of a friend.
New city. New school. New rules.
Ethan flopped into a chair, spinning his phone on the table.
"So… any friends yet?" he asked Rose.
She paused, napkin half-folded.
"Maybe. One person's… nice."
Ethan raised an eyebrow.
"Nice how?"
"Just… quiet. Like me."
She didn't say Jade's name.
Didn't say how sitting across from her in the library felt like breathing easier for the first time in weeks.
Elena set the pot on a trivet and sat down.
The three of them filled the small table, elbows almost touching.
They ate in comfortable silence at first—forks against plates, the hum of the fridge.
Then Elena spoke.
"I got a call from your dad today."
Rose's fork stopped halfway to her mouth.
Ethan looked up sharply.
"He wants to video call this weekend," Elena continued.
"To check in. See how you're both doing."
Rose set her fork down.
Her stomach twisted.
Part of her missed him—the dad who used to read her bedtime stories, who taught her how to ride a bike.
The other part remembered the nights she'd hidden in her room with headphones on, Ethan pretending to sleep in the next bed.
"What did you say?" Ethan asked, voice flat.
"I said yes. But only if you both want to."
Rose stared at her plate.
"I don't know."
Elena reached over and squeezed her hand.
"You don't have to decide tonight. We'll talk tomorrow."
Ethan pushed his chair back a little.
"I'm not talking to him if he's gonna act like nothing happened."
Elena nodded slowly.
"That's fair."
The room felt heavier for a moment. Then Elena changed the subject.
"Rose, you've been quieter since school started. Everything okay?"
Rose thought about the hallways, the questions from classmates, the way Jade's presence made the noise fade.
"Yeah. Just… adjusting."
Ethan snorted.
" You've got a crush or something ?"
Rose kicked him under the table.
"Shut up."
He grinned.
"Kidding. Mostly."
Elena smiled—real this time.
"Whoever it is, I'm glad you're finding someone to talk to. That's good."
After dinner, Rose helped clear the table while Ethan disappeared to his room with his headphones.
Elena washed dishes; Rose dried.
In the quiet clink of plates, Elena said, "I know this move was hard. On all of us. But I'm proud of you, Rose. You're trying. That matters."
Rose swallowed.
"I miss… some things. But not all of it."
Elena turned off the faucet and dried her hands.
"Me too."
They stood side by side for a minute, looking out the small kitchen window at the city lights flickering on.
Later, in her room, Rose sat on the bed with The Bell Jar open but unread.
She thought about Jade—about the library table, the shared silence that didn't feel empty.
About how, for the first time since the move, she didn't feel completely alone in a new place.
Her phone buzzed.
A text from an unknown number.
'Hey. It's Jade. Got your number from the class list. Hope that's okay? Library tomorrow?'
Rose's fingers hovered.
Then she typed back.
'Yeah. See you there.'
She set the phone down and stared at the ceiling.
Outside, the city hummed—cars, distant sirens, life moving on.
Inside, something small was starting to feel like home.