The reply didn’t arrive until the next morning.

The girl saw it as soon as she opened her eyes, before she’d even gotten out of bed. Twice during the night, she’d woken and checked the shining surface on her nightstand. Both times, there had been no new message, and she’d gone back to sleep with an uneasy feeling, as though she’d forgotten to do something important.

Now four words waited for her.

Fine. Do whatever you want.

She read them again.

There was nothing openly unkind about them. Her friend hadn’t said she was angry, hadn’t blamed her, hadn’t even asked her to change her mind.