e words, tried to tell herself it

cidences kep

d say, ruffling Em's hair when she voic

She' d seen Sharon Evans' s comp

or bread, her movements a little more forceful th

en the mothers wa

d a bit too fancy for their town, versus Susan Carter, in her practical jeans

oses bloomed first – Sharon turned everythi

n, long before she met Tom. And that Sharon had always had a thin

started, festering over years, pa

ught in the crossfire; she w

hould try out next year, you have so much more natural stage presence," Shar

er mother, absorbing the p

esperate for her mother' s approval. If Sharon praised her, Brit

wingset, something in Britt shifted. The anxiety hardened

he same way. Instead, she seemed focused on

uring class, not with envy, but w

uzzle Britt had

ling bee, a modest achievement but one she

gold-colored plastic cup Em held. "It was suppo

re you talking about?" Em asked

r head. "Doesn't ma

flat blue, seemed

h rivalry anymore. Britt genuinely believe

ing a scholarship, of maybe, just maybe, being one of the

ew to fight whatever strange darkness