I struggled to carry three heavy paper bags of groceries from Trader Joe’s as I walked up the street to my building, the short handles digging into my forearms. After a long day at work, an intense craving for steak and a big fresh salad hit me, so I’d decided to splurge on organic vegetables and a nice rib eye at the market in addition to the usual weekly haul. A muffled ding sounded from my phone inside my purse as one of the bags started slipping. I placed all the bags on the ground and stretched my aching arms. Taking the opportunity to check my phone, I dug it out and clicked my email app. I let out a ‘yip’ when I saw the new email was from Caroline Kraut, the reporter I’d contacted in the hopes of finding Adam’s employer. It had taken three emails and a bit of pestering to get her to look up the information from so long ago, but my tenacity had paid off. Caroline had emailed me the name of the company Adam had worked for, along with the phone number she had for them on file. It was a start.

With renewed energy, I picked the bags back up and rushed up the steps into our building. On my way down the hallway, I quickly grabbed the mail from the small metal boxes lining the wall. After swinging our apartment door open, I spotted Andie sitting quietly in the living room, no TV on or Spotify playlist blasting through her laptop speakers. The calm silence was extremely out of character.

‘Hey, cuz, guess what? That reporter Caroline finally emailed me—’ Andie turned around and my smile immediately fell. She was visibly upset.

‘I … I need to talk to you about something.’

I dropped the bags and mail on the kitchen counter and walked quickly to the couch, plopping down next to Andie. ‘Okay, you’re freaking me out. What’s wrong? Did you have a fight with Travis or something?’

Andie shook her head. ‘No, it’s nothing like that.’ She paused and looked at her hands. She was fiddling with a hair tie, looping it around her hand multiple times and then taking it off. I remained quiet, waiting for her to continue. I’d only seen Andie in this state once, when our grandpa had collapsed and been taken to the hospital. Finally, she looked up at me and there were tears in her eyes. ‘You’re gonna hate me, Lizzie.’

My entire body tensed. This wasn’t about a hospitalized family member. A dry, metallic taste invaded my mouth and I swallowed a few times, trying to brace myself for yet another family truth bomb. ‘Just tell me, Andie.’

Andie let out a deep breath. ‘Okay. I think I might have known that you were adopted.’

I went into shock, my hands shaking. Not Andie, too.