She said: what are you making?
I said: Gabriel’s favorite.
She looked at me.
She said: you’re being nice to him.
I said: I’m making dinner for guests.
She said: who’s coming?
I said: a few people.
She said: should I stay in my room?
I said: absolutely not. You’re sitting at this table.
She said: Sara.
I said: Mom. You are sitting at this table for dinner.
She said: Gabriel.
I said: I have handled Gabriel.
She said: how?
I said: you’ll see.
Gabriel came home at six.
He had been quiet since the previous night.
He had the quality of a man who has been told something and who has not fully integrated it and who is managing the unintegrated feeling through the ordinary activities of a normal day.
