The first envelope had her name on it.
Mom.
She couldn’t breathe.
She opened it carefully.
The letter was short.
Mom,
If you’re reading this, I probably didn’t get the chance to say everything I wanted to say.
Please don’t think I was keeping things from you because I didn’t trust you.
I was keeping them from you because I wanted to fix them first.
I wanted to come home with something good to tell you.
I wanted you to stop worrying about me.
I wanted you to know that the last few years weren’t wasted.
I found someone who needed help.
And somehow, helping him helped me too.
Diane stopped.
She pressed the letter against her chest.
There was more.
His name is Marcus.
If anything happens to me, please don’t let him disappear again.
He has spent too much of his life believing he doesn’t belong anywhere.
Please tell him he does.
