A GIRL NAMED NOVA.
There was no kindness there, but no cruelty either — only a kind of distance that made me shiver.
“I don’t keep strays,” he said simply, and walked out.
For a long moment, I sat frozen, my heart twisting. Stray. That word cut deeper than I wanted it to.
But I had nowhere to go. No money. Grandma was in the hospital, and if I left now, I’d have nothing.
By the time I stood, tears had already begun to burn behind my eyes. I cleaned my face with the towel and put on the simple white dress laid out on the chair. It fit perfectly — too perfectly, as if someone had measured me in my sleep.