Chapter 13
Lucille refused to apologize to Emmett.
I did not force her.
Forced apologies teach children the wrong thing too.
Instead, she stayed away.
Good.
Celina tried.
I made her wait.
A week.
Then another.
When she finally came, Emmett was in the kitchen with Helen.
Blackberries again.
I had not planned that.
Life occasionally writes cleaner scenes than I do.
Celina stopped in the doorway.
Emmett saw her.
His face changed.
Not terror.
Caution.
That was enough to hurt her.
She crouched several feet away.
“Hi.”
He said nothing.
Good.
She looked at me.
I did not help.
This was hers.
“I was mean to you.”
Emmett looked at the bowl.
Celina continued.
“I told you Lucille would like your cobbler.”
He nodded.
“I knew she might say no.”
Another nod.
“I should not have done that.”
He finally looked at her.
“Why laugh?”
There.
The question.
Celina’s face crumpled.
“Because I wanted other people to think I agreed with her.”
Emmett frowned.
Too complicated.
She tried again.
“I was scared to be the only one not laughing.”
He thought.
“Daddy no laugh.”
Celina looked at me.
That hurt.
Good.
“No.”
She swallowed.
“Your daddy didn’t.”
Emmett returned to the berries.
Then:
“You can’t have mine.”
I almost laughed.
Celina almost did too.
Then caught herself.
“Okay.”
That was the consequence he understood.
No cobbler for Celina.
Fair enough.
She left without asking forgiveness.
Good.
Outside, she cried.
I let her.
May you like
Change that requires comfort from the person harmed is still selfish.
She would have to live with his caution until he decided otherwise.
