“Um... Yes. Ready,” I say, leading her to the door.
Minutes later, we drive downtown.
She stretches her legs, meeting my eyes as I give her a side-eyed glance.
A smile creases her lips.
“You look different,” I say.
A mysterious grin makes her eyes twinkle.
“I feel good. And I haven’t been out in a while. Besides last week, I’ve never had a night out as a couple with someone.”
“We’re not a couple... yet.”
Grinning, she looks out the window, averting her eyes.
“Do you want us to be?” she asks.
“Is that even a question?”
She looks at me.
“I’m testing you.”
Smiling, I shake my head.
“No, no. No testing, please.”
She gazes out the window again.
“I think we’ve been a couple for some time,” she says.
“You think so?”
She turns her head to me.
“Yes. I think we’ve been a couple all this time. Even when we were apart. It’s not something we could plan. It’s in our blood.”
She laughs softly.
I don’t.
“What makes you say that?”
“After you left…” she says. “Things weren’t the same for me. I was angry and blowing off steam. I felt trapped, and I was…”
She pauses, looking at me as if expecting me to contest what she just said.
“I couldn’t understand why you did it,” she continues. “I thought you had so much for me in you. But in the end, I had to let it go. It didn’t matter what I did or how hard I fought your memory. The change was done. The bound was sealed. The things that used to work for me no longer did. My life was different. Different than before I met you.”
I look at her.
“I felt the same way.”
I bury her hand in mine and bring it to my lips.
She stares at me, motionless, as I gently place a kiss on the back of her knuckles.