- Unstable Balances.

The living room was no longer a mess. The cushions were back in place, the blanket that had served as an improvised tunnel was now folded neatly over the back of the couch, and on the coffee table, three steaming mugs of coffee sat next to a tray of vanilla cookies and a few slices of banana bread that Lara had taken from the freezer and warmed up in the microwave.

“Well, now that Thiago’s asleep,” Lara said, settling on the couch across from them with her mug in hand, “why don’t you tell me what you two were doing so far from home without an umbrella?”

“It was Matías’ fault,” Patricio replied, pointing at him with a jerk of his chin while grabbing a cookie. “He said it wouldn’t rain until later. Who trusts the weather in this city, anyway?”

Matías smiled faintly, his fingers wrapped around the hot mug, as if thawing out his thoughts.

“It was my fault, yeah,” he admitted, not sounding very remorseful. “But I won’t deny it was a good excuse to stop by.”