Part 5

He arrives at Mandy’s house wondering after this if everything will be changing and if he was the only one in love and if he could fix what might be wrong. How do prepare for the unknown? His guard is up on all fronts, something not unfamiliar to him. He was used to uncertainty and having to protect himself, and himself only. If the rooms in his childhood home could talk they would say, “look what they did to him!” and tell you many stories of dysfunction, unjustified beatings and verbal and emotional abuse.

He knew how to overcome most anything, but he was not sure he was prepared to lose. He moves briskly towards Mandy’s front door and she opens it before he gets to the porch. Her eyes are bloodshot and her cheeks and nose are red.

“Oh, Mandy, What’s wrong? What’s going on sweetheart, you’re not okay,” forgetting about all of his previous apprehensions.

“Come in,” she tells him, trying not to make eye contact.

“Mandy what the hell is the matter?” He asks in sort of a ticked off and concerned voice as he enters the apartment.

“Please, you need to sit down for a minute-”

“Mandy! Come on! What the hell? Are we not still the same two people as we were a couple of days ago? Don’t treat me like a stranger.”

Mandy beginning to crumble and cry hysterically shuts the door behind him as he sits gingerly on the arm of the sofa where they had leaned in for their first kiss.

“I’m sorry-”

“About what?”

Barely able to speak…“I have said- this millions of times already- you just weren’t in front of me.”

He gets up off the edge of the sofa and pulls her into his arms and wipes tears from her eyes and kisses her forehead.