"Yeah, I'm good."
"Great." Relief colors his tone. "Actually, I was thinking—my sister lives about fifteen minutes from the church. Would you mind if we stopped by for a bit? Just to say hi to my nephew. He's been asking about me."
My chest tightens. Meeting his family. That's not what this was supposed to be.
"Um, yeah. Sure. That's fine."
"You sure? I don't want to make things weird."
Too late. Everything about this is weird.
"No, it's cool. I'd like that."
Would I? Yes. Absolutely. Which is exactly the problem.
"Perfect. I'll pick you up at the plaza like last time. I'll text when I'm close."
"Sounds good."
A pause. I picture those dark eyes, the way his lashes frame them, how he looked at me across that deli table.
"Liza?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks. For coming to these meetings with me. It helps. Having someone there who gets it."
My throat goes tight. "Same."
We hang up. I sit there staring at the screen, Daniel's voice still echoing—extra weight, better choices, brain rot—while Julian's warmth lingers like perfume.
I grab another handful of popcorn and shove it in my mouth.
"This is fine," I tell the empty room. "Everything's fine."
On screen, the bachelor hands out his final rose. The music swells. The rejected girl sobs in the limo.
I know exactly how this ends. The warning signs are everywhere. But I'm watching anyway, pretending I don't see the crash coming.
Daniel's in the bedroom, probably doing pushups or reading some productivity book. Julian's voice still rings in my ears.
Excited. Scared. Guilty.
I've got all the feelings.
I reach for my phone, open a text to Jenna:
Going to another meeting Thursday. Don't say it.
Her reply comes fast:
I'm saying it. This is a bad idea.
I toss the phone away, unpause the show.
She's right.
I'm going anyway.
