“But don’t mistake that for a promise about tomorrow.”

“I won’t.”

I kissed him because I wanted to.

Then we kept walking, with no bodyguards around us and no pretending the past was settled.

I still keep Walter’s compass.

I no longer use it to look for hidden answers.

I keep it to remember that even the people who love us can be wrong when they believe they have the right to decide for us.

And that no safety is worth the price of living without knowing the truth.