183. Designed To Divide

He sat in his car for a long time, staring at the familiar outline of the house through the windshield. The soft golden glow from the windows made it look alive, as though someone were still inside, waiting for him to come home. But that was just an illusion. The woman who had once lived here with him, the woman he had once called his wife, had long stopped waiting. He did not know when she had moved out but he knew she no longer lived here. He wondered if that night had haunted her so much she had decided to flee. He wondered if he had hurt her so much she could not bear to live where they had formed memories.

He drew in a breath and let it out slowly, his chest heavy. He had driven here without thinking. His hands had simply taken control of the wheel, guided by a memory he could not shake. Every brick, every flicker of light through the curtains, tugged at something deep in his chest.

It was hers now. Legally, emotionally, completely. The house belonged to Adrea. He had signed it o