C
(Ethan)
I think I’ve known for a while.
The words left my mouth quietly.
Calmly.
Far calmer than I actually felt.
Because the truth was that nothing about this felt calm.
Nothing.
For weeks, I had convinced myself that I was imagining things.
For weeks, I had searched for explanations that hurt less.
Stress.
Medical school.
Exhaustion.
Pressure.
I had accepted every possibility except the one sitting directly in front of me.
Not because I was stupid.
Because I didn’t want it to be true.
Unfortunately, wanting something and changing reality were two very different things.
The silence stretched between Clara and me while people continued moving throughout the coffee shop around us.
The strange thing was that nobody seemed to notice.
Nobody looked in our direction.
Nobo
