That silence told me everything.
My heart dropped.
“Did you save your lunch money?”
He didn’t answer.
“Caleb.”
“A little.”
“How many days?”
Silence.
“How many?”
His eyes filled.
“Almost three weeks.”
I closed my eyes.
“You skipped lunch for three weeks?”
“Not every day.”
“Caleb!”
“I ate stuff!”
“What stuff?”
“Apples. Sometimes Tyler gave me pretzels.”
I felt sick.
“You told me you were eating lunch.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You cannot skip meals, sweetheart. Ever. Do you understand?”
His chin trembled.
“But I needed enough before Sophie’s birthday.”
That was when Linda laughed.
Not a warm laugh.
A dismissive one.
“All this over a dress?”
Caleb looked at her.
Linda shook her head.
“You skipped lunch for a two-year-old who won’t even understand what you did?”
“Linda,” I warned.
But she continued.
“She’s not going to remember the dress. She probably doesn’t even understand birthdays.”
