At first, Mary made excuses for him. “He’s exhausted,” she told her sister, Sabine. “He’s scared.” But in her heart, she knew something was changing. On the third day, William’s visit lasted just ten minutes. The day after that, he didn’t show at all. Calls went unanswered. When he did come, he looked distracted, often glancing at his phone or checking the time. The intimacy—the connection that once bound them—was slipping away.
Determined to reignite their bond, Mary arranged a small date night from her hospital bed. She asked the nurses to help light a few candles and set up a tray of his favorite snacks. But William canceled last-minute: “Big client emergency,” he said flatly. Mary forced a smile and told the nurse, “He’ll make it up to me.” But when the nurse left, Mary stared at the untouched setup and swallowed tears.
Friends visited often, offering casseroles and sympathy, always asking, “Where’s William?” The man who once surprised her at work with tulips and silly poems was now a ghost. Mary couldn’t explain it to them—because she didn’t understand it herself.