Chapter 11 - THE WOMAN WHO TAUGHT HIM TO LISTEN
Dante and Emily became friends before anything else.
They talked about books.
Work.
Parenting.
And the strange ways grief changed people.
Emily told him about Aaron.
How he sang badly while cooking.
How he collected broken clocks.
How he taught Lily to notice patterns.
Dante listened.
He didn't try to replace Aaron.
Didn't pretend the past could be erased.
One evening, they sat on Emily's apartment balcony.
The city lights glowed below.
“Do you ever think about leaving Chicago?” Dante asked.
Emily smiled.
“Sometimes.”
“Where would you go?”
“Somewhere quiet. Maybe near a lake.”
Dante nodded.
Emily looked at him.
“What about you?”
He thought for a moment.
“I used to think I belonged wherever people were afraid of me.”
She laughed softly.
“And now?”
He looked at her.
“Now I think I'd like to belong somewhere people actually want me.”
Emily's expression softened.
For a long moment, neither spoke.
Then she reached for his hand.
Dante looked down.
“Emily?”
She smiled.
“Don't make it complicated.”
May you like
He laughed.
And for the first time, their hands met without fear.
