Spells for Lost Things

by Jenna Evans Welch

Families splitting are like earthquakes. Yes, they are happening every day all over the world, but that doesn’t make them any less shocking when they happen to you.

But in Paris? I reveled in my displacement. I was a misfit on purpose. I showed up with no idea who I was, and the City of Lights said, No problem. We’ve been welcoming random American weirdos for decades now. Have you checked out the Quartier Latin? Pas de problème! I’ll give you directions.

“You know when you’re truly missing something? When your life isn’t complete without it? You feel it in here, and you’d do anything to find the thing you’re looking for?” She jabs her finger in the direction of my heart, and all of a sudden I’m flooded with emotion because yes, I do know that feeling. But why does she know I feel that way?

The story began, as many stories do, with a girl who bloomed too big for the space that the world had carved out for her.

“That’s my job, though, isn’t it? It’s kids’ jobs to push back and our job to make it safe for them to do it.”

I sit for a while, watching the kids diving into the waves over and over, wondering what it would be like to have a parent you could push and push against and never have them break. It sounds imaginary.

“Silly girl. Magic isn’t something you learn. It’s your birthright! Anyone who tells you that you need special training to perform magic is in it for their own good. Witchcraft is about what is already inside of you. You get to listen to your own inner voice and decide what makes you most powerful.”

“I want to discover something in space that one else has. I don’t care how small or insignificant. But something new.” I know how true it is the second I say it. Alternate-reality Mason would be an astronomer, but more than that, he’d be a discoverer.

“You’ll do it. Curse or not, I know for a fact that you’ll travel the world.” Her smile is brilliant now. “Really? How do you know?” “It’s obvious. Planets orbit the sun, and Willows orbit the Earth.”

I don’t have many days in my life that I’d like to repeat, but I could live in this one forever.

“You know what tonight feels like?” My mind immediately answers for me. Like watching lightning bugs float in the darkness. Like the moment when the edge of the ocean meets your bare feet. Like that first rumble of thunder from a full sky.

My brain is an absolute tangle, but when I look up at the dark sky, I know something for sure. The stars existed without Mason and they’ll exist after him, but to me, the constellations make zero sense without him. Without Mason they’re just a random smattering of stars.

I decided I was going to be the perfect mother. I bought all the books and went to all the classes. I was going to get motherhood right. But none of those books tell you that motherhood is one long goodbye. From the moment your child is born, you are preparing them to leave you. It’s the entire goal.”

She gives my hand a little squeeze. “I saw your future in travel a long time ago. That’s why I sent you to Paris when Dad and I were divorcing. You were losing so much of your identity, and I wanted you to get a taste of who you were going to become.”

“Should we go home? Figure it out from there?” Emma asks. Family isn’t something everyone has. I know that. I’ve spent most of my life without it. And I have no idea what this family will look like in the future, but right at this moment, I know it’s meant for me.

“You look—” I stammer again. I almost say You look like the Andromeda Galaxy. The galaxy is stunning, with a pinkish hue and trillions of stars, but it’s too weird of a comparison, and besides, Andromeda doesn’t hold a candle to how beautiful Willow is tonight.

The perfect compliment doesn’t exi-