Billie stared with her hand over her mouth in surprise. A few seconds later, her feet tentatively padded around me until she crouched above my head. “Are you okay?”

I growled up at her. “Fine. I’ll mop it.”

Instead of shying away, Billie’s expression softened. “Really, are you okay? It seems like it hurt…”

People didn’t usually ask me twice. The sincerity in her voice flushed me with shame for having terrorized her. “I’m good, Billie,” I grumbled, still lying on the ...