For once, he did not attach a condition to his words.

I acknowledged receipt and left it at that.

People can change, I knew.

Change must be demonstrated over time, not declared in a paragraph.

I would not teach Theo that a moment of remorse erased a pattern of harm.

That night he asked for the same bedtime story twice.

When I finally closed the book, he touched the scar that had faded near my collarbone.

“Did that hurt?”