For a few weeks, things between Kieran and Clara settled into a fragile calm. Diane was still around... She and Amelia were practically glued to each other, but Clara had stopped flinching every time her name came up.
Diane kept her distance when it came to Kieran, sticking mostly with Amelia during family events. The brunches and casual hangouts were less tense, though Clara sometimes still felt like an observer rather than someone fully rooted in the dynamic.
Kieran noticed. He always did. But he didn’t press, sensing Clara needed time.
What none of them expected was that Diane’s reappearance would stir up something Kieran thought he’d buried years ago.
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It happened late one Tuesday evening.
Kieran and Clara were watching a movie in his apartment when his phone
