"That's gotta be it," Mikaela mused after she'd swallowed her mouthful of cake. "I mean, they wouldn't go to, like, another world, right? There's nothing wrong with this one." This one was where she was, but she didn't want to say that; it sounded pretty selfish.

She scooped another bite out of the cake, but just held it, looking at Nena through half-lidded eyes. "Who does he think he is?" she asked softly. "Just leaving like that, not telling anyone, not giving anybody any say in it. Where does he get off?!"