Instead, I pushed a paper towel toward Lumi and kept my voice steady.
“Sweetheart,” I said, “you don’t have to protect my feelings. If I did something wrong, tell me.”
Her lip trembled so hard the soup rippled in her spoon.
Then she slid off the chair.
Not running. Not panicking. Moving like a child who had practiced being quiet.
She went to the front hallway, picked up her backpack, and hugged it to her chest. Her fingers worked at the zipper twice before she got it open.
“Daddy,” she whispered.
It was the first time she had called me that.
