[15: Upon the first days of spring...]

The first days after Sama left the hospital were hard. No daily visit to check in, and no phone calls came. Meera tried not to let herself fret, but she kept imagining it easier if she could just phone her sister.

That friday, though, sitting in class, her mobile vibrated to life. She jumped, not expecting the shaking in her pocket, and she drew a glare from the teacher for the interruption.

She checked the message the moment class ended. 

“I got a mobile! Cherrie says I’ll have to pay for calls, but I can send messages!”

She sent a message back before her next class, and almost before she’d finished sending, replies came. The end of the school day couldn’t come fast enough. Today it wasn’t the escape she needed, and it seemed to drag on forever.

She had to take the bus home. Dick’s classes ended sooner, and he had errands to run that had to be done before the day was over. 

Uncle Ram was waiting for her when she got home. She made tea, and he left her alone for a few minutes. Another message in her pocket. She started on homework, and then she smelled burning. Uncle Ram was in the kitchen, staring at the toaster as a plume of black smoke rose out of it. 

“You couldn’t wait until supper?!”

He shrugged. “I was still hungry.”

She fished the burning bread out of the toaster and doused the smoldering remains in water to stop the smoke. Uncle Ram looked lost, so she fetched biscuits for him.

She cracked her books open, and another message. And another. And another. So much for math homework.

She put chicken in the oven for supper. More messages.