“Are you sure you don’t need help, dear?” Constantine’s mother asked. Constantine merely sighed as she tucked the phone to her ear with her shoulder. “I’ll be fine, Mom. I’m only grabbing the boxes I want to keep. The rest will be handled with a moving company at a later date.”

“If you say so.” A short pause. “Connie? You… know you could always ask for my help, right?

“… I know, Mom,” Constantine answered in a softer voice. Her mother had been calling her more frequently ever since that confrontation she had with Lizzie. “I’m sorry. I was trying not to worry you.”

“You always try to. That’s what worries me even more.” She heard a sigh over the phone. “Alright, I’ll let you get back on what you were doing. Give me at least a text later.”

Constantine hummed in agreement before pocketing her phone. There wasn’t much she planned to keep; she could probably cram everything into her car in one go, but she would need to arrange for those she was planning to donate or sell.

“The realtor said that he’ll tour the potential buyers this Wednesday, right?” Constantine murmured to herself as she scrolled down the text she received the other day. “I guess a lot of people would want a house like this.”

It didn’t take long for Constantine to move and label most of the boxes, placing them neatly against the wall to make the house look more spacious. She reached for the last box, marker and tape in hand, and opened it to check its contents.

“Oh. This is where I put these,” she said to herself as she picked at one of the picture frames. Many of them were of family pictures, all elegant gowns and suits. The largest was a portrait of a couple, with the man standing beside a cushioned armchair where a young woman sat, his hand resting at the chair’s backrest. At the back of the portrait, she could see some words written: A.O’nner | M. O’nner.

“She really was beautiful, just like the notes said,” Constantine murmured. She felt weird. After reading the words they left in the book, it felt as if she was meeting a pen pal for the first time. Even so, the woman in the portrait looked different from the one she got to know from the book; somber and formal, captured in a black-and-white filter rather than the bright and curious young woman who loved to paint.

Constantine wondered if her great aunt ever stopped waiting for Benedict.

She looked at where she had put her bag earlier; she had brought the book with her, hoping that she’d have enough time to check the library later.

“I could use a break, anyway.” At the very least, she felt she needed to bring some closure for the young woman she got to know through those notes.

As she exited the house and was about to unlock her car, a bright color from the corner of her eye caught her sight. She turned to look and suddenly felt her fingers freeze as she looked at the familiar car parked close by. For a moment, she could almost smell the familiar ocean-scent car freshener he preferred mixed with the smell of leather, with the familiar souvenir keychains still hanging from the rearview mirror.

No. No, I don’t want to see him. Not now.

Without thinking, Constantine turned and walked down the road, her steps short and brisk as she kept her eyes on the ground, and her breathing hard as her heart fought to jump out her chest. She felt lightheaded, trying not to imagine the words she’ll say after so long, the words he’ll say to her. He always seems to know what words to say to get to her.

She shook her head harshly. No. She couldn’t let herself be that pathetic anymore.

The road branched out, and Constantine quickly followed it until she could see the bottom of a door. Without thinking, she threw the door open.

Inside the cafe, Amelia was blankly looking at her phone, her hand still holding the cash register open while debating whether she should check in with Jonah. Or if she was still even entitled to. She didn’t regret her words to him that night, but she couldn’t help the doubt from growing. Did she do the right thing? She even said congratulations to Heather without breaking down, which was a relief. Should she start with a clean slate with them? Jonah’s family has been friends with hers for years, so there’s a high possibility that she would see him again. Both he and Heather.

Should she even try? Or would it be better to just… keep distance?

“I don’t even have his new number,” she sighed to herself. “Why am I working myself up?”

The sound of the little bell by the entrance practically made her jump. She quickly closed the register, her customer-smile in place to greet— “Wait, Constantine? What are you doing?”

The said woman didn’t seem to hear her as she leaned at the door, both shaking hands on the handle and making it rattle a bit. Amelia couldn’t help but feel alarmed at how pale the other woman was and how her shoulders were hunched.

“What is it? Is it a burglar? Some criminal?” Amelia fumbled around and grabbed the first, solid-feeling thing she could touch—which was her menu clipboard.

Constantine shook her head. “No, there’s no—” She swallowed. “Sorry, there’s no problem. Just—the car…”

“Car?” Amelia slowly looked at the window. “The one behind yours? The white one? I think it’s white? It’s a bit far.”

Constantine nodded again. “Sorry. I just… I don’t want to see him. I kinda panicked and—” She tried to control her breathing.

“Him?” Amelia continued to watch the car. “The driver… looks like a woman, though.”

Constantine froze. “… a woman?”

Amelia nodded. “A sundress-wearing one, with sunglasses perched on her head, even. Looked like a tourist.” She pointed, “Look, she’s driving past here.”

The two of them watched as the white car drove past the cafe. When it was out of sight, Constantine looked ready to slide to the ground.

“Are you okay?” Amelia asked, hands hovering at her side. What should she do? She still looked a bit pale.

Constantine nodded her head. “I’ll… be fine.” She chuckled, but her voice sounded flat. “I’m sorry for suddenly bursting in and scaring you. I kinda panicked.”

Amelia shook her head. “Don’t worry about it.” She pulled Constantine to the closest table and pushed her to sit in the chair. “Um, do you want some water? You look a little spooked.”

Constantine shook her head wordlessly. Amelia stood near, looking around before her eyes landed on the kettle by the counter. Oh yeah, she was planning to make some coffee earlier.

She looked at the other woman; Constantine had put her face in her hands. Amelia went back to the counter. Her hand moved automatically as she moved through the familiar actions of grinding and pressing, the scent of coffee helping control the adrenaline. After a few minutes, she put a mug-full of hot coffee on the table, making Constantine raise her head.

“Don’t worry, it’s on the house,” Amelia said, sipping her own coffee as slowly as she could to cover her sneaking a look at the other woman. Slowly, Constantine grabbed the offered mug with both hands, eyeing the black liquid.

For a moment, none of them spoke. Amelia thought that the silence was weirdly comfortable despite the earlier fright. In front of her, she could see Constantine’s fingers tapping the side of the mug.

“My ex had the same car,” Constantine finally said in a soft voice. “An Audi A5. Same color, as well.” She caressed the rim of the mug with her thumb. “I haven’t talked with him in months. I thought he found me.” Her voice broke a bit at the end.

Amelia pressed her lips to her cup. “Did he… hurt you?”

She tried to ask as carefully as she could, which made Constantine look at her before shaking her head. “No. No, he didn’t physically hurt me.” She sighed. “Though… we didn’t have the cleanest breakup.”

Amelia couldn’t help but sigh, feeling her shoulders loosen. Truthfully, she didn’t know what to do when it came to legal stuff. “Has he been stalking you, then?”

Constantine shook her head. “Not that I know. I also blocked him on everything, so he never tried reaching out to me. Though, according to Lizzie, he also couldn’t be reached through anything.”

She sounded like she would like to spit the name out, Amelia thought to herself. “Well, you can hide here for a bit. If you want, I could also help you smack your ex if he ever found you here.” She gestured at the menu clipboard beside her.

Constantine snorted and cracked a small smile. “Thanks. It actually sounds reassuring.” She looked at the window. “It’s kind of pathetic, isn’t it? Everything ended months ago, and yet the sight of a similar car would get me this worked up.” She sounded derisive as her grip on the mug tightened. “He betrayed me, chose someone else—my own fucking best friend— and yet I could still remember everything we did like it was just yesterday, and the thought of seeing him again feels too painful that I just…”

Jonah’s face flashed in Amelia’s mind. “It feels too much, doesn’t it?” Her voice was soft as she gazed at her own mug. “No matter how hard you push yourself forward, it still feels as if you’re stuck in place. Stuck in time. Makes you wonder if you’re just wasting your time convincing yourself that you’re already fine.” She drank another sip; the coffee’s gotten cold.

Constantine was looking at her now. Amelia couldn’t help but smile a little as she shrugged. “I was dumped. By my childhood best friend. Except, we weren't really together. I thought our feelings were mutual, but it turns out, he… chose someone else.”

“I’m sorry it happened to you.”

She sounded sincere. Amelia relaxed even more. “I was young. I assumed things without clarifying them for years, and I ended up nuking my friendship with him. Plus, the girl he chose… Well, it would have been better for me if she’s some stuck-up, selfish girl with an ego as high as a skyscraper. Maybe then, I could actually hate her.” She sighed. “Alas, it seems I was destined for failure in that department.”

Constantine took her first sip of her coffee. “I was with Anthony for almost six years. We have known each other since high school, but we only became official in college. Then I found out five months ago that he’s been sleeping with my best friend for almost ten months.”

Amelia couldn’t help but hiss. “Dang. Sounds like an asshole.”

“He is,” Constantine sighed. “I feel like I wasted years of my life.”

“Makes you think you’re such an idiot, right?” Both women chuckled at that until they lulled into another silence.

“Have you talked to them?” Constantine asked. “Your friend?”

Amelia hummed. “I did. Recently, in fact.” Amelia stretched her legs under the table. “I wasn’t sure what I wanted to say, initially, so I just… let it out.” She looked up at the ceiling. “Now I’m confused. Like, have I really moved on, or is it just doing the mature thing to do?”

Constantine tilted her head. “Do you want to see them?”

Amelia quickly shook her head. “Too scared.” Constantine laughed, which made her chuckle, as well.

“The library!” Constantine suddenly cried, making Amelia jump. Outside, the sun was halfway down the horizon. “Drat, I forgot.”

“You were planning to go to the library?”

Constantine nodded. “You mentioned before that the library had some records on the prominent families here, so I wanted to check it out.”

Amelia furrowed her eyebrows. “Oh! About that book from your great aunt?”

“Yes. I didn’t get the chance last time I was here.”

Amelia hummed. “Want me to help you out? I was planning for a grocery run soon, so I could come with you downtown tomorrow.” She paused. “Well, that is, if you want me to? No pressure, though! I wouldn’t mind if you prefer to go alone.”

Constantine smiled; this time, a proper one. “I’d like to.”