My mother was discharged on the morning of the 5th.
Daniel didn't come again. I handled the discharge paperwork alone, called a car, and took my mother home. Once she'd settled in, I went back to my own place.
We'd chosen that house together before we married. The living room was filled with sunlight. Back then, Daniel had said he wanted me to wake up to sunshine every day. Later, his business trips became more frequent. I sat alone in that patch of sunlight, waiting as his promises changed from "I'll be home soon" to "I'll be home next week," and finally, "Don't wait up."
I opened the closet and took out his clothes one by one. I folded his suits, shirts, ties, and the gray coat he always wore in winter, then packed them into cardboard boxes. There was still a movie ticket stub in its
