“Tears?” he asks. I nibble my bottom lip and try to keep more tears from releasing. “Ryan, I... Well, I…” I can’t get the words out. I feel them, but I can’t say them. His face is soft as his mouth tilts into a smile, and he pushes the hair back from my face. “I know. You don’t have to say it yet.” Again, such compassion. It disarms me.
