“Yes. I do.” A heavy silence settled between them.
Mark stood there swaying slightly, as if he had been hit. Then he dropped into the nearest chair and put his head in his hands. “I didn’t mean for it to go like this,” he muttered.
“Eleanor, come on. Let’s just talk. No more games, no more…” “This isn’t a game, Mark. This is our life. And our life together is over.” Eleanor sat down across from him and spoke gently, but firmly.
“We’re both unhappy. We haven’t loved each other in a long time. You met someone else. I know. I saw the message.” Mark jerked his head up. “You… knew?”
“Yes. And honestly? It didn’t even break me, because I haven’t had feelings for you in a long time either. There’s habit. There are memories. But love? I think that’s been gone for at least three years.”
Mark sat in silence, absorbing it. Then he asked quietly, “So what now?” “Now we get divorced. Civilly. Without a circus.”
“The house stays with me. It came from my family. The money stays with me too. You have your salary. You can rent a place. You have Julie—go build a life with her.”
Mark gave a bitter little laugh. “Julie… right. The thing is, she’s not in love with me. She’s in love with the version of me I pretended to be. The successful guy with money and plans. I’m just a middle manager making forty-eight hundred a month.”
“Do you think she’ll stay when she finds that out?” “I don’t know,” Eleanor said honestly. “But that’s not my problem anymore, Mark. That’s your life. Your choice.” She stood and handed him a napkin. He was still damp from the rain.
“Go home. Pack your things. Tomorrow I’ll come by for the documents, and we’ll start the divorce paperwork. Okay?” Mark took the napkin, wiped his face automatically, and nodded.
“Okay.” He stood and slowly walked toward the door. At the threshold he turned back. “You know… maybe you’re right. Maybe this is how it has to be.”
“I just… hate that it ended this way.” “So do I,” Eleanor said quietly. “But life goes on. Just not together.”
The door closed behind him. Eleanor went back to her table by the window and finished her now-cold coffee. Her hands trembled a little, but inside she felt calm. It was over. Completely over. And something new was just beginning.
