lerk's questions in a steady voice. Each answer, each signature, felt like a deliberate step away from the life I once knew. My hands were steady as I signed the fin
aid, stamping my file. "Your new passport and doc
walked out of the building and into the bustling c
I had shared, to pack my things. He was never there, always with Sarah at the hospital or the new
zy Sunday mornings. I looked at the face of the man in the photos, the man who had promised me forever, and felt nothing but a d
ts, his shoes. I folded them and packed them into boxes, which I labeled 'Liam' in blac
every film we had ever seen together. The worn copy of his favorite book that he used to read to me. Each item was a memory, a small piece of the life we had built.
d. Liam walked in, and he wasn't alone. Sarah was with him, leaning on
and the stacks of boxes. The air
, his voice strained.
ot looking at him. I focused on seali
It' s temporary. You don' t have to leave. I bought a new place for Sar
gaze. "It' s your home. I' m just
nor, please don' t make things difficult for Mr. Vance. He' s been under so
through me. She looked at me with a mixture of
ed, my voice dripping with an
bing my suitcase, but S
d over, her face contorted in
instantly. "What' s w
nger at me. "She... she glared at me. The stress... it m
lief. She was actually blaming
you do? I told you she needs a peaceful environment! Can' t you j
. I was the one who had been betrayed, abandoned, and
st like he had during the fire. "It' s okay, I' m here. I' ll take y
, leaving me standing alone amidst
burn, my head still throbbed from the concussion, but he hadn' t asked about m
s no
out looking back. My past was now packed in boxes an
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