Sophia
Patricia had asked me to do one final walkthrough before Monday's official opening, something about double-checking the courtyard lighting now that the landscaping had fully settled in, and I hadn't thought twice about it, grabbing my site notebook out of habit and heading over after work without bothering to change out of my day clothes.
The building was quiet when I let myself in, the front desk empty except for a security guard who waved me through without much comment, and something about the stillness of it, the whole wing finally finished and hushed and waiting, felt different than it had during any of the busy, noisy months of construction.
I found the courtyard glowing.
Dozens of small candles lined the low garden wall, their light flickering warm against the evening dus
