my sweatshirt pocket weeks later after I’ve returned home. I look to my left as my brothers yell at me to get up. They look disheveled. Their ties have come undone, and their suits are speckled with sand. My mother will be furious at their attire especially since they’ll be wearing the same suits at the wake tomorrow. I slowly lift myself out of the sand as my feet guide me towards my grandparents’ condo. It’s not until I hear my brothers call my name again that I realize I’m heading in the wrong direction. The condo has been uninhabited for months; the new owners are probably moving in any day now. I turn around and begin to head back to the hotel. I take one last look at the sky. The brushstrokes of purple and orange fade beneath the sparkling canvas of stars. My eyes blur with tears as I know this is probably the last time I’ll ever be here.
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