I married my school sweethea.rt, but on our first wedding anniversary, I overheard him say, “I’ve been fooling her since school. Tonight I’ll finally do what I planned.”

I believed him. Every single time.

I caught myself glancing at his hands.

 

Meanwhile, my friends got married. Even my younger cousin, Megan, tied the knot at 24, and I laughed too loudly to cover the ache. Then there was Diane, my stepmother, who never missed a chance to twist the knife.

« Sandra, honey, » she said at Thanksgiving two years ago, in front of the whole table. « You’re the girlfriend who couldn’t close the deal! »

Everyone laughed. I did, too. I’m good at laughing.

There were other things I was good at ignoring, or at least that’s what I told myself.

I laughed too loudly to cover the ache.

 

Somewhere in the back of my mind, a quiet list was writing itself.