I felt hollow.

That was the only way to describe it. Like someone had scooped out everything inside me and left nothing but empty space.

"Cynthia, want to watch a movie with us?" Angie called from the living room, already scrolling through Netflix on our tiny TV. "They have that new rom-com you mentioned wanting to see."

"I'm tired," I said, my voice coming out flat. "I should put Alex to bed."

"I can watch the movie," Alex said from the couch, where he'd been resting since dinner. "I'm not ...