s last earthly possessions. Maestro Chen drove him again, waiting in the car as Ethan walked up the long, stone-paved driveway. He

ulled the old key from his pocket, the one he had carried for over a decade. He slid it into the lock. It wouldn't turn. They had changed the locks. Th

ing at him with suspicion until his mother's voi

ed, her expression unreadable. "Your things are in your old room," she said,

staircase, his steps echoing in the hall. He reached the door to his bedroom, his hand hovering over the knob.

were a different color, a sterile beige instead of his deep blue. His posters of famous composers were gone, r

e first time. The dog's ears perked up. He lifted his head, and for

ed. He sniffed the air, a low growl rumbling in his chest. The dog looked from Ethan to the doorway and back, confused. Liam h

aid, his voice cracking

pt at the foot of his bed every night now saw him as a threat. The invasion was co

lt weak, a phantom echo of the paralysis that had once confined him. The doctors had said stress could trigger neurological symptom

through his haze. She stood in the doorway, her fa

ure of delicate health. He put a comforting hand on Emil

s for comfort. Liam bent down and stroked the dog's head

self off the wall, his body trembling. He looked at his

ou're causing a scene. Liam needs his rest

box for a crime he didn't commit. He was the one whose body still bore the scars of the acci

s in the corner, hastily packed. He opened one. It was just a few old books and

c?" he asked, hi

d the space for his own studio equipment. Mom probably put

tossed aside like trash. He looked around the room again, at the expensive new keyboard and recordi

he boxes, his hands shaking too much to hold them prope

yours, Ethan," Liam said, his voice laced with fal

front door, gasping for the clean, cold air outside. He didn't stop until he reached the gate. He leaned against the cold ir

ught of a memory from long ago. He was ten, and he had fallen out of a tree, breaking his arm. His father had carried him all the way home, his mother holding his hand, Emily cryin