“You have to stop hurting yourself! You’re not okay at all!” He practically exploded. For the first time, I realized that he was in pain, that my tragedy had become his own. With that revelation, a hole was blown through the earth’s crust. That reckless lunatic felt sorry for me, and I truly loved him. Numb to my own feelings, I never saw it coming. Faraway sounds drifted toward us. The charade was over. It was no use.
