Victoria called Elena’s parents the following morning.
She reached her father first.
Elena was asleep on Maren’s sofa when her phone began vibrating.
Her father’s voice was careful.
“Are you all right?”
She sat up immediately.
“What happened?”
“Victoria said there was a disagreement.”
Elena closed her eyes.
“What did she say?”
“That you became upset when she offered to help us.”
Her father paused.
“She suggested we talk some sense into you.”
Elena pressed her fingers against her forehead.
She hated that the evening had reached them.
She hated even more that Victoria had tried to recruit them.
“I need to tell you what happened.”
He listened.
He did not interrupt when her voice shook.
When she finished, he said, “She asked whether I knew how much money she was offering.”
Elena looked down at the borrowed blanket.
“What did you say?”
“That my daughter isn’t an invoice.”
She began to cry.
Her father waited.
Then he added, “Your mother wants to know whether you’ve eaten.”
The question was so familiar that Elena laughed through the tears.
They did not ask why she had refused the check.
They did not suggest being practical.
They wanted her home for dinner.
That afternoon, she went.
Her mother had made soup. Her father had bought bread on his way back from an errand.
The kitchen was small.
One cupboard door never closed properly.
Nobody at the table needed Elena to prove she belonged there.
