I had prepared for confusion, for suspicion, for hostility, for the awkwardness of a stranger who did not want me there.

I had not prepared for joy.

It is a strange truth that we armor ourselves against unkindness and stand completely defenseless before affection, and Nora’s face in that first moment went straight past every defense I had.

You cannot keep a professional distance from someone who is that glad to see you.

You cannot count down the minutes on a person whose whole face has become a welcome.

I put my phone away midway through that first visit, and I never took it out to check the time again, not once in six months.