I could wait for that improvement in my own bedroom.

The thought was so plain it almost made me cry.

I opened the door and let the cane rest beside the chair.

The sheets were clean.

A small crease ran across the pillow where I had set it before leaving for the hospital.

I remembered doing that: arranging the bed, checking the windows, thinking about the morning I would return.

I had not imagined the closing file being prepared while I made those ordinary plans.