James had just dished up a bowl of oatmeal, and with a teasing smile, he nced at the little girl who looked none too pleased. "Want me to feed you?” he joked.


    Mirabe, hearing his yful offer, quickly reached for the bowl, grabbed the spoon, and started eating without a word.


    James chuckled and settled down beside her.


    When they were almost done eating, James casually mentioned, "Oh, by the way, your grandma called yesterday."


    Mirabe paused, swallowing herst bite, and looked up at him, "What did you tell her?”


    "I told her you were caught up with a school project and would ring her back when you had a chance," James said, handing her a napkin.


    Mirabe nodded, wiping her mouth. "Alright, I''ll give her a call now."


    “Okay.” James got up, fetched her phone from the nightstand, and handed it to her.


    “Thanks,” Mirabe said, dialing her grandma''s number.


    James started tidying up the table, his mind drifting back to what Catherine had said on the phonest night. People might change after waking up. But besides the girl''s slightly unreadable expression when she woke, nothing else seemed different.


    Mirabe''s call connected quickly. The conversation was as routine as ever, neither bringing up anything new. After a bit of chit-chat, Mirabe said, "Hold on, let me switch to video."


    Catherine''s tone changed, "Next time, okay? I''m outside, not really convenient for a video call."


    “Outside? Not convenient?" Mirabe thought it odd. It was unusually quiet for someone who was outside. "Where are you?" Mirabe asked.


    "At the corner store near Granny Yellow''s, so not really a good time," Catherine replied, sounding normal enough.


    Mirabe ran her fingers over the phone, “Alright, we''ll video call next time."


    Catherine sounded relieved, "Okay."


    Just before hanging up, Mirabe added, “By the way, for Christmas, I''m thinking of bringing you over to spend it with us."


    Catherine''s voice caught a bit, and she wiped her slightly misty eyes, “Okay.”


    “Great, it''s settled then. I''ll get a ticket to the city as soon as school''s out ande pick you up," Mirabe nned.


    Catherine looked up, knowing her Mira couldn''t see her, but she smiled, “Okay, I''ll do what you say.”


    After they hung up, Mirabe leaned back in her chair, a small frown creasing her forehead. Something felt off with Catherine. Her reluctance to video call was one thing, but she''d agreed to Mirabe''sst suggestion much too readily. Normally, it would take some convincing.


    “What''s on your mind?” James asked, noticing her thoughtful expression after the call.


    Mirabe twirled the phone in her hands, tilting her head towards James, "Did anything seem off when you talked to Catherine yesterday?"


    "Off?" James thought for a second. "She just asked me to look after you, nothing unusual in her tone." He shrugged, "Why, did she say something?"


    "Not exactly," Mirabe mused, "Just a gut feeling that something''s odd."