They all soon settled on the large sofa, with Alicia and Oliver seated together in the center.
Oliver was full of questions about Alicia's favorite color, her house, and whether she had any ponies of her own.
"I don't have ponies," Alicia admitted with a smile. "But your mother, when she was ten, convinced me to buy her a rabbit. She said she'd take care of it herself."
Oliver turned to Evelyn, eyes wide.
"You had a rabbit, Mommy?"
Evelyn silently swallowed before nodding, "For about three days. Then Stella fed it too many carrots, and it got sick."
"Hey!" Stella protested. "You're the one who left it outside in the rain."
Alicia chuckled softly. "And that's why... I never bought them another pet."
The room filled with laughter, the kind that comes easily when old wounds finally start to heal.
Evelyn leaned back against the couch, her gaze softening as she watched her son chatting with Alicia.
