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“Yeah. You know, the big leafy guys, with the pink and yellow veins?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Okay, well, they’re tasty. You can toss ’em in a pan with some oil and garlic and have yourself some real good greens. You’ve definitely had this.”

“When?”

“We used to have greens with dinner all the time.” At Heartwise, Cora meant. The thing you had to suffer through before you got your cheesy toast.

“I thought that was spinach,” Twig said.

“I mean, sometimes.” Cora said. “Not always.”

“Hm.” Twig shrugged. “I guess greens are all green to me.”

Cora put the chard starts back on the shelf and tried a different tack. “Here, check this out.” She waved for Twig to follow as she made her way to the tank of aquatic plants. “Did you know plants can grow underwater? ’Cuz I didn’t.”

Twig crouched down to look, but her face didn’t change much. The bubbles on the leaves didn’t grab her the way they’d grabbed Cora the first time. “Huh,” she said.

Cora pursed her lips. Twig wasn’t into it, and . . . okay, that was fine. She didn’t have to be. “So, uh—who’re you meeting in Midtown?”

“Oh, just a friend for chicory. Nobody you know.” Twig straightened up and put her hands in her pockets. She looked skinnier than usual, Cora thought. Skinny even for Twig. “Hey, um, I wanted to tell you about something. I didn’t want to just message you. I wanted to tell you myself.”

“Yeah, shoot,” Cora said. Was Twig eating enough? Cora was not keen to give her any more money, but if the kid was hungry, that was a different story.

Twig looked nervous, but she smiled at Cora—that same clumsy, lopsided smile she’d always worn when sharing something personal. “I got a job,” she said. “Full-time, good pay.”

“Holy shit!” Cora cried. She punched Twig’s shoulder lightly. “That’s great! Where?”

Twig put up her hands, asking Cora to cool it. “I don’t want to say yet,” she said. “It’s a really good job, and I don’t want to jinx things.”

“Okay,” Cora said, putting up her own hands in surrender. “Okay, yeah, sure.”

“I really do want to tell you about it,” Twig said. “But I’m so scared I’ll fuck it up. So lemme get a good start there first, and then I can tell you more.”

Cora was dying to know the details, and she didn’t believe in jinxing stuff, but she also understood. The kid needed all the luck she could get. “Twig, that is really, really great,” Cora said earnestly. She eyed Twig’s bony cheeks. “A steady paycheck makes all the difference.”

“Yeah, totally,” Twig said. She took a breath, fidgeting a little, looking back at the plants and away from Cora’s eye. “I just . . . y’know. I want to get my shit together. And I want you to be proud of me.”

“Sweetie,” Cora said with soft surprise. She put her hand on Twig’s shoulder. “Hey. Of course I’m proud of you.”

Twig smiled sadly and shook her head. “I know I’m a fuckup,” she said. “And you always save my ass, every time. This time, I wanna do it. I want to make good on my own for once, y’know?”

“Aw, hey.” Cora pulled Twig into a big hug, as surprised by this turn as she had been by Twig walking in the door in the first place. “Hey, c’mon. We all fuck up.”

Twig hung on tight, like she was a little kid again. “Not like me,” she said into Cora’s shoulder.

“Maybe not,” Cora teased. She received a muffled chuckle. “But it doesn’t mean I love you any less.” She gave Twig a closing squeeze, then let go, keeping her hands on her sister’s shoulders. “Whatever this new thing is, I hope it goes awesome. I know you can do it.”

“Thanks,” Twig said with a nod, looking like she was trying not to cry. There was clearly more to it than being nervous about a new gig. Maybe she’d been doing some thinking. Maybe this was the chapter in which Twig finally got her shit together. It wasn’t unlike her, to stumble through feelings piecemeal. Maybe she was just working stuff out. And much as Cora wanted to know everything going on in Twig right that minute, it also felt great to be the person she came to for a hug and a vague update.

Twig cleared her throat. “My new work schedule is gonna be kind of a lot, so I might be kinda quiet for a few weeks. Y’know, while I get used to it.”

“Yeah, sure,” Cora said with a nod. “Do what you gotta do, and just let me know you’re alive sometimes. Oh, hey—” She considered her growling stomach, her waifish sister, and the depressing bowl of ramen she’d been trying to spruce up. “I was gonna have lunch, but I can’t leave the shop empty. If I kicked you a few bucks, do you want to go pick up some takeout? Come back and have lunch with me here?”

“Oh, that’d be great, but—”

“Right, your friend,” Cora said, remembering. “Yeah, totally.” She smiled at Twig, gave her a little fake punch on the chin. “Thanks for coming by, though. It’s good to see you.”