She sighed elaborately and peered up at me. “So life is just a game.” Her smile was tentative, brittle.
I considered the matter no longer than a moment. “Some people make it that way. It doesn’t have to be.”
My words had opened some lock, unburdened some weight. She squared her shoulders and leveled her gaze. “It doesn’t have to be,” she repeated. “It doesn’t have to be.”
