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“No. Why would you ask Megan to set up your birthday party?”

“I don’t know. It just seemed like the easiest way to get it done.”

Shaking my head, I sigh. “We’ll talk about it when I get home.”

“Cool.”

“I hope you have a great day today. Be good.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. I’m always good.”

I hope that’s true.

“Megan is yelling at me to hurry,” she says. “So I gotta go. See you tonight, Dad.”

“I love you, Kennedy.”

“Love you, Daddy. Bye.”

“Bye.”

She ends the call like I’m an afterthought.

I hold my phone, staring at the screen. She’s all right. Kennedy is perfectly happy there with Megan.Everything is going to be all right.

Me: You up?

Kate: Can you calculate time zones?

Me: Sorry.

Kate: I’m up now. What do you want?

Me: Thank you.

Kate: You’re welcome. But what for?

I try to articulate what I want to tell her. Thank her for … being rational. Talking the truth to me. Getting our parents to her house so I could get Megan to mine.

Me: For not being another brother. They just got worse as they went. Mallet, Gav, Luke. Can you imagine yourself as a boy? Fuck my life.

Kate:

I laugh.

Kate: Since you’re here, I have a big meeting today with my boss. Whisper a little prayer or juju or whatever for me, okay?

Me: Okay. Good luck.

Kate: Thanks.

Me: Going back to work.

Kate: Learn about time zones during your lunch hour.

Me:

Kate: And also learn emoji etiquette. We do not thumb unless we want to fight.