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As he pauses, I fetch the ring box inside my bag and slide it across Larson. “You should keep this.”
Larson stares at it for a few solemn seconds; just the music and chatter filling the silence between us. Then, he says, not taking his eyes off the box, “I meant everything I said, everything I felt when I gave you that ring. Can’t you at least keep it?”
I shake my head. I’d already made up my mind. “I don’t want to be reminded about… the fallout.”
Staring at the varnished surface of the table, I can see Larson wiping a lone tear from his cheek in my periphery. Seeing him cry, even just a little, doesn’t tug at my heartstrings as much as I thought it would.
It somehow relieves me.
Larson nods understandingly.
He asks, “Is there… is there anything you want to tell me?”
I do—no, Idid.But sitting before him, I no longer feel the need to sayanything.I’m at peace with the things that happened; things I have no control over. And now, I choose not to let my hurt emotions do the talking. So, I just reply, “My things. Where are my things?”
I can see Larson’s surprise as he processes my calmness.
I can tell he’s expecting me to break down, cry, and maybe even beg. His startled eyes tell me that much.
Trying to regain his composure, he replies, “They…they’re in my car. I can drive you back to the apartment with them. Or if you want, I can load them in Clara’s car.”
“I’ll take a cab,” I dismiss him.
“Are you… are you sure?”
“Yeah,” I confirm. “I’ll just use the restroom.”
I don’t wait for his answer as I stand, making sure I don’t stumble over my own sandals. But unfortunately for me, the universe has other plans. As soon as I turn my back to Larson, I hit a body.
I quickly mutter an apology, “I’m sorry—”
As I look up, I see that I happen to have hit Carter’s shoulder. He looks down at me with that familiar, caring gaze. Then, his eyes move to where Larson is. Then, back at me.
As he assesses the situation, I can see his mechanical brain whir to life.
Then, he decides tosaveme. Recreating the first night we met, he says, “We went to the same bar the other night, right?”
While his entire existence already caught me off guard, his warm words feel like an embrace.
When I don’t answer immediately, Carter widens his eyes and tilts his head towards Larson, gesturing that I should play along. And so, I do. “Oh—oh, right. We did. Was it… last week?”
“Beats me if I remember,” Carter grins playfully. Still, I look for disappointment in his bright face. He adds, “Look, I’m bad at names. So, if you could tell me your name, I’ll buy you a coffee.”
Standing in front of him, a foot away, sends a different serenity through my body.
Then, he looks over my shoulder to Larson. “You don’t mind, right? I mean, it seems like you guys… broke up or something.”
I can’t help but look back at Larson, who looks like he’s been sucker-punched in the gut. Stunned, he can only nod in surprise.
And for whatever reason, I feel like I won this round.
The last round.
At the end of my conversation with Larson, Carter has convinced him to load all four boxes of my stuff into his car. Larson, on the other hand, kept a constipated expression on his face.
As he loads the last box in the back of Carter’s car, he turns to me with concern, “Are you… are you sure about this?”
I give him a blank expression. “Yes.”
