They kept seeing each other. Two years after the homecoming, Nathan encountered Emily and Noah at a Memorial Day community event near the town center. Noah was three and a half by then, racing in erratic circles near a row of food trucks while Emily tried to keep him from colliding with folding chairs. Marcus stood several yards away talking to another parent.
Nathan saw them before they saw him and considered quietly changing direction. Then Noah ran directly into his leg. The child bounced backward, startled, and looked up. Nathan steadied him by the shoulders.
“Whoa. You okay?” Noah nodded solemnly. Emily arrived a second later and stopped short when she recognized Nathan.
“I'm sorry. He's fast.” “So I see.”
Noah looked between them. “You know Mommy?” The question contained no history, only curiosity. Nathan looked at Emily, then back at the boy.
“Yeah. I knew your mom a long time ago.” Emily's eyes shone unexpectedly. Marcus approached then and slowed when he saw Nathan.
The old tension surfaced but did not take over the air. “Nathan,” Marcus said. “Marcus.”
Noah tugged at Marcus's hand. “I bumped him.” Marcus smiled down at his son. “Did you say sorry?”
Noah turned immediately. “Sorry.” Nathan crouched enough to meet his eyes. “You're good, buddy.”
The child grinned and raced away again toward a chalk drawing area, forcing both parents to follow after him. Emily paused only long enough to say, “You look well.” “So do you.”
It was true. She nodded once and went after Noah. Nathan stood there watching for a moment, not because he wanted that life but because he could finally see it without translating it into what had been stolen from him. Noah was a child running toward sidewalk chalk.