Danilo
The ranch looked the same.
Warm lights spilling out of every window. The smell of hay and horses even from the driveway. The big oak tree out front that Daniel and I used to try to climb and fell out of every single time.
It was 9pm. I was secretly hoping Pa and Pai were already asleep. That we could slip in, drop bags, pretend we were too tired to talk tonight.
Nope.
The second the car stopped, the front door burst open.
Pa came out like a tornado in boots and a flannel. Loud. Texas. All arms. "Kolli!" he yelled. "My boy! You're back!" He grabbed Kolli before he could even get his footing. Big hug. The kind that lifts you an inch off the ground.
Kolli smiled. A real one. "It's good to be back, Uncle Bobby," he said, voice soft.
"Pa," Pa corrected immediately. "You're family. It's Pa."
Kolli nodded. "It's good to be back, Pa."
