Lois’ son, Miles, finally came home, promised to fix the leak under the sink. On his last night, he took out his dead father’s tools, went to work. “What would I do without you?” Lois asked.

Long after Miles left, Lois lay in bed, listening for the drip, missing it.

Maggie Nerz Iribarne practices writing in a yellow house in Syracuse, New York. This year, she won first and finalist prizes from Dead Fern Press, Zizzle, and Honeyguide Literary Magazine. She keeps a portfolio of her published work at maggienerziribarne.com.