“Astrid is not important to me. It’s no one! One caseworker described Astrid as my imaginary friend—and don’t give me that look, Trey,” I say, straightening. “What look?” he asks in surprise. “I’m not some broken thing you need to fix. Just because I wasn’t raised in the Valley of Thistle with a perfect family doesn’t make me broken.” “What does it make you then?” “Resilient.” “You can act like this is nothing. You can walk around with a mind full of secrets, but if you want to let me in, I’ll be here for you.”
