If I Could

{31} - The Reunion

The building was dark and cold, located in a dodgy area of the city. He looked around, only to find that no one seemed to be there. He shrugged, he wasn't scared at all, he had been there before. Brian took a deep breath as he found himself in front of Catherine's apartment door, the place where she'd go whenever she felt down and didn't want her children to see her crying. He knew she was there, her car was parked outside, but he stopped to wonder if seeing her again would be the right thing. What would he gain from this encounter? Absolutely nothing, but he felt the urge to talk to her, especially when they both had stopped talking in such strange circumstances.

Brian knocked on the door, and waited for Catherine to answer. She opened it almost immediately, furrowing her eyebrows as soon as she saw him.

"What — what are you doing here?", she questioned, sounding as confused as she could.

"I can leave if you don't want me to be here", he answered, putting his hands inside his jacket pockets and directing his gaze towards the pavement.

"That's not what I asked", Catherine uttered in a low voice, crossing her arms by her chest. "Come in".

Brian entered the small flat, sitting on a small stool next to a window. The room was dark save for a small night light illuminating it, making Brian come to the conclusion Kate was probably planning on spending the night there.

"Are you planning on sleeping here?", he asked as he closed the door. "I can see that you've brought some food".

"No, this area is too dangerous", she responded as she sat in front of him, her emerald green eyes dilating at the lack of clear lighting. "I suppose you're here to talk about something".

Brian sniggered, shaking his head in denial.

"I understand why you'd think I'm here to talk about something important but I really don't have anything to say", he stated, chuckling at his unexpected response. "I just.. wanted to say hello".

"Just tell me whatever you want to tell me, Brian", she insisted, making fierce eye contact with him. "Why would a man with a baby daughter and a stable partner drive all the way here just to tell me nothing? You've been out of the radar for such a long time. I thought your job as an astrophysicist caused you to get lost into the freaking void and disappear the way you did".

Brian laughed at Catherine's witticism.

"I'm not lying, I really don't have anything to say", he uttered. "I took a chance and decided to see if you were here. I wanted to check up on you because you're going through a divorce. That's all".

Kate gulped, lowering her eyes.

"Thank you, I guess".

"How do you feel about it?", Brian asked, folding his hands together. Her answer was most likely to be a predictable one, but he still wanted her to talk about her feelings with him.

"You know I've been fearing this for a really long time", she confessed, avoiding to look at him again. "When you don't want something to happen you spend so much effort trying to avoid it, so when it finally happens.. You don't have any more energy to invest on it. I'm numb right now, really. I'm sad Roger filed for divorce, but at the same time I don't care anymore because I know there's nothing I can do to change his mind. It's over. We're a lost cause".

Brian narrowed his eyes, surprised by Catherine's indifferent statement. She used to talk about her divorce with such immense fear and rage, and now she just boringly chuntered about it, as if it had never signified a problem to her. Brian stood silent for a moment, licking his lips to renew their moisture, not knowing what to say.