He nodded.
“I couldn’t throw away proof that I’d once been loved like that.”
I smiled through my tears.
“You were an idiot.”
He laughed.
“I know.”
“No.”
I shook my head.
“You really were.”
“I know.”
“You should’ve trusted me.”
“I should have.”
“You should’ve let me stand beside you.”
“I wanted to.”
His voice cracked.
“I was just too young to understand that protecting someone isn’t the same as deciding for them.”
I folded the photograph carefully.
“I hated you.”
“I know.”
“I spent years thinking I wasn’t enough.”
His face crumpled.
“Doron…”
“I wondered what was wrong with me.”
“There was never anything wrong with you.”
“I know that now.”
I looked at him for a long moment.
“The sad part is…” I smiled sadly. “…we lost the same 22 years.”
He nodded once.
“Yes.”
Neither of us tried to pretend we could get them back.
Some losses stay losses.
The sliding door opened.
Stormy peeked inside.
“Are we interrupting?”
I wiped my eyes quickly.
“No.”
She looked from Richard to me.
“You both look like you’ve been crying.”
Jordan smiled.
“I figured that part was unavoidable.”
Stormy walked over and slipped her arm through mine.
“Can I ask one question?”
