“Tell me,” she whispered.

“What?”

“Tell me about him.”

Marcus sat across from her.

“He was stubborn.”

Diane smiled through tears.

“Yes.”

“He hated asking for help.”

“Yes.”

“He pretended he didn’t care about birthdays.”

Diane laughed softly.

“That sounds exactly right.”

“But he remembered everyone else’s.”

Her smile faded.

Marcus continued.

“He remembered little things. The kind of things most people forget.”

He pointed toward a photograph.

“That was from the first time Buddy trusted him.”

In the picture, Caleb was sitting on the floor with his back against a wall.

Buddy was asleep across his legs.

“He stayed there for almost two hours because he didn’t want to wake him.”

Diane smiled.

“He always loved animals.”

“I know.”

Marcus paused.

“He also loved you very much.”

Diane looked away.

For some reason, those words hurt more than anything else.

---

The Question Diane Had Been Afraid to Ask

“Did he ever talk about me?”