you expect the day to stop meaning anything at midnight,” I said.
Her hand tightened against my shoulder, then relaxed. She stepped back far enough to look at me. For the first time all morning, there was no joke available that either of us seemed willing to use.
“I never knew,” she said, “whether you were careful because our friendship mattered, or because you simply didn’t want me.”
I let go of her hand too slowly.
A car passed behind us. Inside the café, someone dropped a spoon into a
