With a trembling heart, she knocked on the door. Silence answered back.
Emily hesitated, her fingers barely touching the wood before she pulled the key from her handbag and turned it in the lock. God, how long had it been? Everything looked just as she rememberedfrozen in time, untouchedyet now it all felt cold and unfamiliar.
Nearly a year had passed since the argument with William. Theyd quarrelled before, of course. Emily would bundle up little Sophie, tears in her eyes, and flee to her mothers. Usually, William would come running the next day, missing her too much to stay angry. Life would settle again, peace weaving its way back between them. But last time last time had been different.
Shaking off the thoughts, Emily marched to the wardrobe, determined to find the papers she needed. They lay undisturbed, neatly tucked into a folder, just as shed left them. For two months now, a younger manone whod adored her for yearshad been courting her. Nothing had happened between them, but just last week, hed proposed.
All week, Emily had tossed and turned, something heavy pressing on her chest. At first, she thought things with William would resolve themselves. Hed knock on the door, as he always did, look deep into her soul, and whisper, *”Ive missed you so much.”*
But days turned to months, and nothing changed. William grew colder, more distant, the gap between them widening. He only came to see Sophie, wordlessly taking the little girl by the hand for visits, then returning her later. Sophie would chatter happily, twirling in new dresses or shiny shoesgifts from her father. Emily remembered how Williams eyes used to shine when he gave *her* presents. Now now he barely glanced her way. Their shared space felt suffocating, and shed hurry to her room. Her mother, never fond of William, often said, *”What will be, will be.”* Slowly, Emily had begun to believe it.
Taking a deep breath, she cast one last look around the roomthen froze. William was asleep on the sofa, exhausted after his shift. Her first instinct was to flee, but something pulled her back. His face was painfully familiarthe stubble, the dark circles under his eyes. She sat beside him, studying him. What did she really know about this man shed spent years with? What thoughts lay behind that furrowed brow? A memory surfaced: young William, bright-eyed, grinning in a way that had once turned her world upside down. Could that boy and this weary man really be the same?
God, where had it all gone? She glanced around desperately, as if searching for someone to blame. Her chest ached, weighed down by regrets. Their once-warm, enchanted world had slowly choked on petty grievances, drowned in tears and misunderstandings. William, always exhausted, working three jobs to provide for them, refusing debt Emily had had time to think. She realised nowshed lacked patience, grace, wisdom.
But they *had* been happy once. It wasnt just her imagination. Emily stood abruptly, desperate to prove it to herself. Her gaze fell on Williams hand, resting on their wedding album. A photo of them, impossibly, blindingly happy.
Her fingers trembled, and the picture fluttered to the floor with a soft *thud*. She looked upand met Williams eyes.
*”Emily you came back?”* His face lit up with joy, and the thought hit her like a blowhalf an hour ago, she could have walked away forever.
With a shattered heart, she knocked on the door. Silence answered in return.
