I was at a disadvantage for being (a) the middle child, (b) a girl and (c) not the girl who had died. Michaela. That was who I was not. Michaela who was bonnier than me and nicer than me and yes, naturally, cleverer than me. And also much less alive than me. You’d think, wouldn’t you, that that would make me all the more precious to my mother and father. Well, at least we still have our lovely Noelle. But no.
