The Library of Lost and Found

by Phaedra Patrick

She thought about the strange sensation that had engulfed her in the arcade, as she bashed the crabs. She’d been unable to identify it before, but now she could. Freedom. She imagined it might be what freedom felt like.

‘Sometimes there’s no right decision. Just the one you make at the time,’ she said.

‘I don’t think they failed… they were reasonably happy ones. Why does something have to last for ever to be classed as successful? Surely it’s okay to give things a try.’

She thought about his words and wondered if she could manage to see Joe in this way, too. That they’d shared five wonderful years together, and that she should be thankful. Even if they had married, it didn’t guarantee them a happy ending.

I have to find the strength to move on. Because there’s no alternative.

And she hoped that the warm glow of appreciation she always looked for, might actually come from within.