I watched the lights flicker on across the neighborhood.
“I want to decide without being afraid.”
He nodded.
“Then we’ll figure it out.”
I leaned against him.
For once, his answer didn’t feel like hesitation.
It felt like a promise he knew how to keep.
A year earlier, I’d spent every morning wondering whether the quiet man across the hall understood what my kisses meant.
Now he’d crossed an ocean to find out what a life with me might look like.
And I knew one thing for certain.
Whatever city I chose, I would never again let someone else’s fear, silence, or dishonesty make that choice for me.
THE END
