I started my car and drove home.
***
When I entered our bedroom, the curtains were still closed.
Daniel had left them that way to make his migraine seem convincing.
I stood in the doorway for a moment.
Then I walked toward the chair where I’d laid out our running clothes the night before.
Beneath one of my sweatshirts, I found a race bib.
Daniel’s original registration.
His name was printed across the front.
DANIEL HAYES.
The charity’s logo appeared underneath.
I stared at it.
He hadn’t used this bib.
He’d registered for a second team.
With Laura.
I sat on the bed, holding the number in my hands.
Six weeks earlier, possibly longer, he’d already decided he wouldn’t be running beside me.
He’d simply let me continue believing we had a plan together.
I placed his unused bib on his pillow.
Then I opened the curtains.
