Chapter 27 - The Teenager
Time is a thief.
It steals the years before you even notice they are gone.
Suddenly, Emma was a teenager.
The crayons were replaced by sketchbooks.
The pink dresses were replaced by dark jeans and band t-shirts.
Button was retired to a shelf, watching over the room silently.
She was fierce.
Independent.
And she challenged Alessandro at every turn.
"Why do I have a curfew?" she demanded one evening, hands on her hips.
"All my friends can stay out until midnight."
Alessandro, reading a report, didn't look up.
"Because you are not all your friends. You are Emma."
"That is not a reason!"
He finally put the report down.
"The reason is that I worry about you. And until you are eighteen, my worry dictates your schedule."
She groaned, rolling her eyes in a way only a fourteen-year-old can.
"You are so controlling."
She stormed out of the room.
I looked at Alessandro.
He sighed, rubbing his temples.
"I miss the days when a new box of crayons solved everything."
I laughed.
"She is testing the boundaries. It's what teenagers do."
"She is testing my patience," he grumbled.
But I saw the small smile playing on his lips.
He loved her defiance.
He loved her fire.
May you like
Because she was strong.
And she would need that strength.
