a photograph taken minutes before he vanished. Mason stood near the fountain, smiling and handing brightly colored Orbeez to other children. On the back, someone had written, “He made sure every child found the brightest one.”
For three years, I had pictured Mason’s last moment as the moment my hand became empty. Now I finally had another memory to hold. His last ordinary moment had been filled with kindness, laughter, and children gathered around him.
That evening, the pool was clear again. I kept one blue Orbeez inside the crack
