Me pulling away.
Me refusing to hear any explanation.
I had been twenty-five.
And absolutely convinced that being certain meant being right.
I saw that one photograph.
Then I walked out.
I left the camera behind.
Later, I told everyone I had lost it.
“You never let me explain,” Stephen said.
He pointed toward the next picture.
“Look.”
The following photograph showed Selena laughing.
Our friend Carl stood beside her with his arm around her shoulders.
Then another.
Stephen between them.
Everyone smiling.
Another showed Selena leaning against Carl while Stephen reached toward her plate for food.
Then another.
And another.
The entire sequence was ordinary.
Friends at a picnic.
Laughing.
Eating.
Messing around.
One frozen moment had made it look like something completely different.
I felt foolish.
“You took all these that same day?”
“Most of them.”
Stephen looked toward the old camera.
“The film was still inside.”
He continued.
