She didn't need the iron paperweight anymore. She had found something much heavier, and infinitely lighter, to hold her world in place.
"I’m not interested in inviting anything," Elara snapped, though her eyes lingered on the stone. "People are unpredictable. Risks are... messy."
Elara felt the stone in her pocket pulse. "And if it doesn't?"
"It's an act of faith," Julian said, glancing at her. "Opening up the soil and hoping the weather stays kind."
"You won't find what you're looking for in the iron," Elias said, his back turned as he polished a brass telescope. Elara stiffened. "I just need something heavy."
She heard the laughter of children, the hiss of the espresso machine at the corner cafe, and the frantic barking of a small dog. Near the park, she saw a man struggling with a sprawling map and a leash wrapped around his ankles. A month ago, she would have walked past, citing her tight schedule.