For the first time in months, the future didn’t feel like something I had to be afraid of.
It felt like something we might build together.
The Final Signature
Michael signed the divorce papers on a Friday morning.
Karen called me afterward.
“It’s done.”
I stood in the middle of my apartment.
“Are you okay?”
She took a breath.
“Yes.”
Then she laughed softly.
“I thought I would feel devastated. Instead, I feel like I’ve finally put down a suitcase I’ve been carrying for years.”
I smiled.
“That’s good.”
“It is.”
There was a pause.
Then she said, “Are you still interested in dinner?”
I looked at the clock.
“I’m interested in dinner, breakfast, lunch, and possibly dessert.”
“Don’t get carried away.”
“Too late.”
She laughed.
We met at a small Italian restaurant near the bookstore.
Karen wore a burgundy dress and a gold bracelet. Her hair was loose around her shoulders, and she looked both nervous and excited.
For the first few minutes, we talked about ordinary things.
The weather.
The bookstore.
Daniel’s latest work disaster.
Then she put down her fork.
“I want to ask you something.”
“Go ahead.”
“Why me?”
I blinked.
“That’s a dangerous question to ask a man who has just ordered dessert.”
“Alex.”
I smiled.
Then I thought carefully.
“Because you make me feel like I don’t have to perform. I can be ridiculous, uncertain, or afraid, and you don’t treat those things like weaknesses.”
She listened without interrupting.
“Because you’re kind without being weak. Because you have opinions and dreams and a terrible habit of pretending you’re fine when you’re not. Because when you’re excited about something, your whole face changes.”
Her eyes softened.
“And because I love you.”
Karen looked down.
For a moment, I worried I had said too much.
