He picked at the sticker on the glass of the frame, peeling it off a piece at a time since it seemed so keen on staying put. The glue was tacky on his fingertips, stuck under his nails... annoying, but a labour of love.

With a cotton swab and some rubbing alcohol, he coaxed the remaining patches of stickiness off of the glass and wiped it all down with a clean cloth. He then opened the manila folder on the dining table and took one of the photos he had been keeping in it, sliding it into the frame with the care it deserved.

He went to the living room, where a hook was waiting for a frame just like this. He hung the picture and straightened it just so before stepping back to admire it for a melancholy moment. The last team photo they took with Johnny in it. It was going on three years now.

Time didn't even have the courtesy to slow down.