After a visit to Marie's, Eli collapsed into bed for a rejuvenating nap. A few hours later, she headed out into the garden. Her father hadn't really scolded her after all; he knew she hadn't done anything wrong. He'd simply asked her to be careful.

Tomorrow was the first day of school. Strangely, while she'd been looking forward to it all week, now she was a little apprehensive. The memory of the party was coming back, and she knew everyone would be talking about it. Eli sighed deeply.

"Are you bored, little sister?"

"LJ! What are you doing here?"

"I came to see Dad, and to see how you were doing."

"I'm fine, and Dad's at the company. He had some paperwork to take care of."

"Thanks, Eli. I'll get it then. Are you sure you're okay?"

Eli sighed again. "I wish the party had gone differently, but hey, we can't change the past, can we?"

LJ laughed. "If only we could."

"If only..."

"Besides, tomorrow I'm taking you to school on my motorcycle. It's non-negotiable, little sister!"

Eli smiled slightly. "Why would I want to negotiate? It's fine with me."

With a broad smile, LJ stood up, kissed his little sister's forehead, and whistled away. Eli watched her brother leave, then took out her phone. After a few minutes, she put it down, not wanting to argue.

She returned to the house, headed for the library, picked up a book at random, and returned to the garden. The afternoon passed peacefully. Eli cherished these precious, restorative moments of calm.

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As the sun went down, Eli got up and headed for the kitchen. She put her book on the table and began to prepare lasagne. In the Thompson family, cooking was a communal affair. Everyone was good at it, and even if none of them was a chef, their dishes were always tasty.

The lasagne was cooking in the oven when her father came in.

"It smells delicious. Lasagna, isn't it?"

"Yes, I've been craving lasagna and it's been a long time since we've had any."

"It's perfect! How long before we eat?"

"About ten minutes. Why?"

"Just enough time for me to take a quick shower before we eat."

"You've got time," Eli replied.

Leon left the kitchen to shower. Eli set the table, then put his book away in the bookcase.

They dined in silence, each lost in thought. Eli broke the quietude first.

"Have you made good progress at the company?"

Leon, caught off guard, answered after a moment's hesitation. "Yes, I'm okay. A bit of bookkeeping to do. I really should hire an accountant, I hate it."

"Why don't you do it then?"

"It's expensive, and even though I don't like it, I get by."

"With an accountant, you could rest..."

"Coffee helps me," Leon joked.

"That's not much of an argument," Eli said, frowning.

"I know," Leon replied with a smile.

The rest of the meal passed in silence. As Eli finished eating, he immersed himself in social networking, chatting with Alicia and Julia.

They cleared the table and washed the dishes together. Leon broke the silence.

"Ready for school tomorrow? Your brother told me he's taking you."

"Yes, I think I'm ready. He's taking me on a motorcycle, I just need to get my helmet and a suitable outfit ready."

"Don't worry too much about tomorrow, everything will be fine, you'll see."

"I hope so..."

Leon put down the dish he was drying and hugged his daughter. After a moment, he stepped aside.

"Your year will go well, you'll see."

"I believe you."

Eli then went up to his room, put on his pajamas and fell sound asleep.