The day before I had to tell my children that their father was never coming home, I saw him standing in my doorway.

It simply means that a human life cannot always be reduced to one sentence.

Then there was Nikki.

At first, I didn’t know what to think about their relationship.

When their first serious incident happened, I was angry with Andy.

I didn’t immediately defend him.

I wanted answers.

I wanted to know what had happened.

Eventually, I spoke directly with Nikki.

She explained her version of what happened.

She described it as an accident and told me she wanted to deal with the situation legally.

I even helped her with paperwork.

At the time, I believed her.

I also believed Andy.

I genuinely thought the situation might have been a terrible misunderstanding inside a relationship that was already struggling.

But over time, I learned that their relationship was much more complicated than that.

There were arguments.

There were breakups.

There were reconciliations.

There was jealousy.

There was controlling behavior.

There were accusations.

There were hurtful words.

There were physical confrontations.

And then, somehow, they would find their way back to each other.

Again and again.

They loved each other.

I believe that.

That was part of what made everything so difficult to watch.

When they were happy, they could look like two people who genuinely wanted a future together.