Ayala cut in shrewdly, “And you preferred presenting it to me as a fait accompli rather than asking—”

Bang! Crash!

Levi was sitting on the floor, colliding two trucks into each other. With her nerves already taut to the breaking point, each crash made Ayala’s head vibrate. She half stood to take the trucks away from him, then sat down again. It wasn’t his fault she felt like she was hovering on a precipice and one wrong word from Dini might just make her fall over.

She turned to Dini, sitting expectantly on the couch.  “Let me get you a drink,” she said, heading into the kitchen. “Would you like...  uh…” She opened the fridge and did a quick scan. “Water?”

Dini laughed. “Perfect.”

Ayala grabbed a bottle, plastic cups, and a bag of breadsticks that she found in the snack cabinet.  She still hadn’t done a restocking grocery shop since she’d returned from the US. She’d have to ask Bracha about resuming their weekly date.

Feeling slightly nervous, she set the food and drink down on the coffee table and sat down opposite Dini. “So tell me what’s been going on while I’ve been away. It sounds like you’ve been very busy with this fundraiser.”

Dini nodded. “Oh, yeah. It’s going to be huge! There’s already a buzz about it. Do you know that my sister called the other day to tell me that people she knows have been talking about Chesed Tzirel, and would I like her to hold an event in her home?” She shook her head, a glint in her eyes. “This is Eliana I’m talking about. She never calls. She’s too busy to do more than WhatsApp. And now she’s offering her precious time to run a fundraising event! She’d only do that if she sees this as a winner.”

Despite herself, Ayala’s eyes widened. “Are you going to take her up on it?”

Dini shrugged. “Still thinking about it. I mean, it’s a great opportunity to get our name out to her set of friends. But on the other hand….” Her nose wrinkled.  “I’ll be hearing about this favor for a very long time, and I don’t know if I can handle that.”

Ayala nodded. After a pause, she said, looking down at her hands, “Funnily enough, I heard about the campaign from my sister-in-law.”

Dini turned to her sharply. “What do you mean? You knew about the campaign.”

Ayala looked up. “I knew you were reaching out to people to raise money. But I didn’t know you were — what were the words she used? — making a big splash online with influencers and a music video.”

Dini narrowed her eyes defensively. “That’s what all crowdfunding campaigns are nowadays.  I’m not doing anything unusual.”

Ayala took a breath. “No? Maybe you’re right. But I still wish I hadn’t had to hear about it from Shaina.”