He was braver at eighteen than I had been at forty.

And I was not going to pick the weight back up, ever again, not even to spare Marcus the discomfort of hearing, at last, the truth about himself.

Chapter 7 — The Folder

Marcus arrived forty minutes after it ended, sweating and furious, and found Ethan and me in the holding area behind the stage, gathering the diploma paperwork.

He did not try to embrace his son.

“What was that humiliating garbage you said up there?” he demanded, his face dark.