That decision was harder than I expected.
Two weeks later, our aunt called.
“Vanessa says you abandoned her.”
I told Aunt Linda what had happened.
She was quiet for a moment.
“Well, she certainly shouldn’t have done that.”
“I know.”
“But she’s having a difficult time.”
“She is. And I’ve spent years trying to make those difficulties disappear for her.”
Linda sighed. “You’re allowed to have limits, Natalie.”
Hearing that from someone in our family helped more than I expected.
I didn’t stop loving Vanessa. I stopped treating every emergency as mine.
Three months passed.
During that time, I heard from Rachel once.
She said Vanessa had taken extra shifts at work and stopped organizing expensive outings.
I was glad, but I didn’t contact her.
Then one Sunday afternoon, Vanessa called.
I almost let it ring out.
“Hello?”
“Hi,” she said quietly. “Can we talk?”
“About what?”
“About the restaurant. And everything before it.”
