And fate wanted it that way...

Destiny

Somewhere in time and space, in an undefined place...

People are so fragile, they literally don't know what surrounds them, they are always looking for their longed-for soul mate, but without my help they, mere mortals, would never find it.

I'm not here to belittle them, but to tell the story of a group of people living in the country of Bestemming, named after me. I'm now following the life of Alan Martins, a teacher who lives in an abusive marriage, but doesn't realize it until the anniversary of his marriage.

Let's stop beating about the bush and tell this story straight.

In Bestemming...

Alan is walking towards the exit of the school where he works as a teacher. Today is a special day for him, a day so significant that he decided not to go to graduate school, but planned to prepare a romantic dinner for his husband. She wasn't sure if Cauã would like the surprise, even though it was a special day for them, their famous wedding anniversary.

It had been four years of marriage, and for Alan those years had flown by, even with all the comings and goings that fate had thrown in their path. When they celebrated their one-year wedding anniversary, exactly two days after the celebration Cauã left saying that he could find something better than Alan, which left him with a broken heart, but what surprised Alan was that it was very sudden, he just woke up one day saying that he didn't want him anymore and left.

Alan spent a week trying to accept that his marriage was over without any plausible explanation, but it really hit him when his friend went to visit him to see how he was doing with everything that was happening and ended up opening his eyes to the fact that his marriage was probably over.

Weeks later her then ex-husband came back saying that he regretted leaving him and that he would never leave him again, and as he still believed everything Cauã said, he believed it, so he gave him another chance, and as if it were fate, the same situation repeated itself over the next two years, and as a fool Alan believed him every time, at least in the last year Cauã didn't go crazy and leave him for no reason.

However, he still believed in their love for each other, that their love could overcome any barrier that fate might impose. But everything was hanging by a thread; if Cauã broke up with him one more time, he felt that he would no longer be able to forgive him for everything. Deep down Alan knew that their love no longer existed. All he could do was stay in the relationship for comfort. As soon as he passed through the school gate, he saw the friendly doorman.

- See you tomorrow Alfredo - Alan said as soon as he passed the gentleman standing by the gate.

- See you Alan - he replied.

Alan turns on the car radio, tuning in to a station that only plays international music. A song starts playing that sums up what Alan is feeling at the moment.

It's a beautiful life

É uma vida bonita

Nan neoui gyeote isseulge

Eu estarei ao seu lado

It's a beautiful life

É uma vida bonita

Neoui dwie seo isseulge

Eu estarei de pé atrás de você

Beautiful love

Bonito amor

Haneurarae neowa issdamyeon

Se você está embaixo do mesmo céu que eu

Sumswineun geosmaneurodo joha

Só respirar me faz feliz

It's a beautiful life

É uma vida bonita

Beautiful day

Dia bonito

Neoui gieogeseo naega saltende

Viverei em suas memórias

Beautiful life, beautiful day

Bonita vida, Bonito dia

Nae gyeoteseo meomulleojwo

Fique ao meu lado

Beautiful my love

Bonita, meu amor

Beautiful your heart

Bonito é o seu coração

Beautiful - Crush

The song stirred Alan's feelings and ended up engraved in his memory. He hummed the verses of the song for the rest of the way, realizing that it would be a long time before he forgot the melody. What until then had been a simple song for the young teacher reminded him that he had never considered his life to be beautiful and that he had never really had anyone who reminded him of happiness, he had Cauã, that was a fact, but he never felt that he really loved him. His eyes, until then focused on the chaotic traffic in the capital of Bestemming, filled with tears. He was so lost in his daydreams that he didn't even realize that the road home had come to an end.

Already dressed and showered, he went to the kitchen to see what he could prepare for the special dinner he wanted to make to celebrate their four-year wedding anniversary. Although his doubts about his love for his husband no longer existed, he decided to ignore them and remain in the comfort of his life.

Alan began to prepare his specialty in the kitchen, lasagna Bolognese. One thing that always made him smile was cooking, which he had always loved to do.

His phone starts ringing, snapping him out of his bubble of joy. He looks over the kitchen worktop and doesn't find it, he's sure he's left it somewhere in the house.

- Hello," he says as soon as he picks up.

- Wow, is that any way to answer me, Al? - Jo Ann said pretending to be annoyed.

- You know very well that I have a habit of answering without seeing who it is - Alan says pretending to be hurt - But tell me, to what do I owe the honor of your magnificent majesty's call?

Jo bursts into laughter on the other end at the way he called her, which infects him too, making them both burst into laughter.

- I'm going to put it on speakerphone, otherwise the dignitary won't let me finish dinner," Alan says.

Without waiting for Jo Ann to say something contrary, he puts the call on speaker and turns his attention to the bolognese sauce he was preparing. He had met her when he was studying Pedagogy at Ange-linny Fonturna College. Jo Ann, with her somewhat clueless personality and a handful of loose screws, had been certain as soon as she had seen Alan, that shy and straightforward being, that she should get close to him, corrupt him.

When Alan saw that the girl who in his mind was the "course freak" was trying to get close to him, he panicked. For months he had been repelling Jo Ann's approach, but at some point that he couldn't remember, he had finally let the "course freak" get close, which he didn't regret, because then he could see that Jo Ann was using the "crazy course" shell to scare people away and cover up her true personality, she is actually a wonderful person who has always been misunderstood for the way she is.

Alan wakes up from his trip to the past to the smell of burning in the kitchen.

- Holy shit! - Alan shouts in frustration.

- You're deafening me, you lunatic - Jo Ann complains on the other end of the line - What is it, Al? What happened?

- I burnt the sauce I was making. Shit! Shit! I'll have to start from scratch.

- What were you thinking burning food? - Jo asks sarcastically.

- How I met you and how you corrupted me - he said, already knowing that she was going to swear.

- But it was you who corrupted me, you shameless, blaming me - she snapped as he knew she would.

- But what were you talking about while I was on a mayonnaise trip? -Alan began preparing a new sauce against his will.

- No big deal.

- Hummm I know - Alan pretends to believe - Who doesn't know you, buy you Jo Ann. Spit it out.

- I told you... I was watching the new Netflix drama that I can't remember the name of, the one about the mobster... and I'm really enjoying it, you should see it - She said it more stuttering and choosing words than anything, he knew she hadn't said it, but he decided to pretend she had.

- I'll add it to my list.

- But you're going to see it, aren't you? - she asked doubtfully.

- Of course I will. It's not like you don't know me, I love an Asian, especially a mafioso - he almost couldn't hold in his laughter.

- "Let Cauã hear you, Mr. Alan," Jo Ann said, making him burst into laughter.

- Let him take care of himself - he says, causing a burst of laughter on the other end of the line - You think I'm joking, don't you? Nobody takes me seriously.

- Hmmm. Stop the drama - she scolds him.

- Let's talk about you, miss. How's life since you last called? - He asked her, giving her no escape.

- It's going - she replied, trying to fool him

- Stop trying to fool me, Mrs. Jo Ann - he scolds her.

- You know, I'm working, living life - she said at last.

- And this heart already has an owner?

- You're tired of knowing that I'll never fall in love again - she replied with conviction.

- But it's been over a year, my friend

- I know, Alan, but I don't believe in love anymore - she said tiredly. - Now I'm going to let you finish dinner for your own good, make sure you enjoy the evening for me, see you later!

- You can leave my favorite crazy. See you! Take care!

As soon as the call ended, Alan finished his dinner, his much-desired lasagna bolognese was almost ready, he could finally breathe a sigh of relief, he would be able to finish dinner for the celebration before Cauã arrived.

As he sat down on the sofa, he took a deep breath with his head resting on the backrest, looked up at the ceiling and sighed, thinking at that moment about how his life was going, was he really happy? Why had he stayed so long in a relationship that no longer pleased him? What did he see "in him" that made him put up with so much?

These thoughts wouldn't leave his head, he tried at all costs to find an answer to those thoughts that had been tormenting him for days, but he couldn't find any plausible answer.

To distract himself, he reaches for the TV remote and turns it on. He decides to watch the series that Jo Ann had just shown him, which ends up distracting him, making him lose track of time, and by the time he's startled, he's already seen two one-hour episodes. What he finds strange is that it's very late and Cauã hasn't arrived yet.

"The number you have reached is disconnected or out of range"

That robotic voice from the voicemail raised his concern, making him wonder why his husband was so late. Alan continued to call incessantly, and the voice of that damn robot had already stressed him out. As a last measure, he sent a message.

Hi, love

Are you coming?

I'm worried. 23:45

The message went, but didn't arrive, leaving Alan more worried and at times suspicious that Cauã was up to something.

"Whenever he gets up to something, he turns off his cell phone." He thought.

It was almost midnight and Cauã still hadn't given any news. Now Alan was sure that he was up to something, and he wouldn't let his husband get away with it. Frowning, already aware of what awaited him the next day, he walked slowly towards the kitchen. Could Cauã have forgotten his wedding anniversary? What was so important that he didn't come home? Doesn't he miss coming home? What do I mean to him? These and so many other questions swirled around in his head, but he was only certain that he would have all his answers as soon as morning came, and depending on these answers he would take drastic action, no matter who it hurt.

When he got to the kitchen, he could see that his hunger had gone, although his desire to get drunk had increased exponentially. He grabbed the wine from the freezer that he had set aside for the long-awaited celebration that might not have happened, and poured himself a shot in one of the glasses resting on the table.

As he made his way back to the living room, his thoughts wouldn't leave him alone, countless situations and possibilities ran through his head. Sometimes he hated having so much imagination, but worse than having it was not being able to control the speed at which these thoughts appeared in his mind.

In the sheer stubbornness that took over his actions, he tried to call his husband, his anger taking over his being as soon as he heard the signal from the voicemail and the following message.

"The number you have reached is disconnected or out of coverage"

Realizing that Cauã wasn't coming home that night, Alan decided to go to bed and figure out what he was going to do the next morning.

Alan woke up from a bad night's sleep at 4:00 a.m.; if he'd slept two hours, it was a lot. He opened his eyes, startled to hear the jingling of keys, then remembered the night before and why he had slept so little, the son of one of his husband's whores had the nerve to stay out all night, and on the day of their wedding anniversary.

He stood up on his tiptoes and walked slowly towards the front door, leaning on the pillar between the living room and the kitchen, giving him a full view of the entrance to his house.

Alan saw the staggering Cauã enter, there was no denying that he had spent a night drinking and partying.

At that moment Alan found himself having to make a decision that would change his life completely. He couldn't stay in the situation he was in any longer.

He continued to stand there, watching what Cauã would do. Seeing that the son of a bitch had dismounted on the sofa, Alan went back into the kitchen to get a bottle of water from the fridge.

Cauã was tossing and turning on the sofa in a drunken sleep, he was still wearing the clothes he had left home in the day before, a black suit, a white dress shirt, the same with a cheap sweet perfume that made Alan crave it, and when he saw the lipstick marks all over his neck, the decision he hadn't yet made was truly made.

Alan watched in disbelief as the son of a good lady spent the night out enjoying life as if there was no tomorrow. He held the bottle in his hand so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

Taking courage he didn't know he had, he poured all the water from the bottle into his face, which caused Cauã to wake up startled, not understanding what was happening, staring in disbelief and not knowing why Alan had done it.

The look that Cauã casts in Alan's direction, like a puppy that has fallen from a chair, causes Alan anxiety and disgust, making him see what his then-husband is capable of doing. He can't stand it any longer and explodes.

- What do you think you're doing? - Alan asks, his voice changing, and he looks at him as if it's going to kill him - Ahh I feel like it, but I'd rather scream!!!

- Stop it, for God's sake, Love - he asked almost imploringly, and Alan's desire at that moment was to laugh at his face, which was almost begging him to stop talking loudly.

- WHAT? I DIDN'T HEAR YOU RIGHT, YOU KNOW, MAINLY THE PART THAT TOUCHES ME - He spoke even louder, but he didn't shout as much as he wanted to - WHICH MADE ME REMEMBER THAT YOU DIDN'T ANSWER ME.

- Sleeping. Isn't it obvious? - He said with a certain trepidation.

- Now get up and get your things together, you bastard.

Cauã got up, not understanding anything that was going on, and to help him, his head was throbbing from the hangover, he looked like a slug in a human body.

- Come on, let's go, I haven't got all day, don't you think - Alan pauses, moistening his lips - This is for yesterday.

Cauã got up from the sofa, falling into his own night's sleep.

- Come on, my son, wake up - Alan says, losing patience with his son's slowness.

He turns to Alan and says.

- Why are you acting like this to me? - The brave man waits for the other to say something that doesn't occur and he continues: "I don't understand you, love.

- Don't ever call me love again." He raised his voice exponentially.

- But I don't understand.

- Do you want me to draw it? - He paused, waiting for an answer from the bastard in front of him. When there wasn't one, he continued - Since you don't want to take any shit, GET OUT OF MY HOUSE NOW, YOU SON OF A BITCH! YOU BASTARD! YOU'RE GOING TO DISAPPEAR FROM MY HOUSE AND MY LIFE NOW.

- What's gotten into you? - Cauã asks him, frowning, trying to remember what he could have done to have left Alan in that state.

- What's gotten into me? Well... Well... Well, the prince doesn't know what got into me. GUESS WHAT?

He looked at Alan, still not understanding.

"But he'll be that slow on Mars." He thought stressed and angry, the mixture of feelings Alan was feeling at that moment blurred his vision and blinded him with rage.

He couldn't understand how he'd managed to stay with him for so long, and was brought out of his thoughts by what he'd just said. - I didn't do anything, love - he couldn't believe the barbarity he'd just said.

- Just look at you - Alan said, going into the kitchen to put away the jug of water he was still holding. It was only at that moment that he realized he was holding it so tightly that his knuckles were whitish.

- What's wrong with me? - He asked, following him.

- You know what, I'm not going to waste my time with someone who doesn't deserve it. When you leave, take advantage of it and forget about me - he said feigning indifference, and I think the son of a bitch ended up believing him, he was very sure and convinced of what he said.

- But love... - Cauã interrupted him.

- Nothing more and I'm not your love any more, I've already said that and apparently I never was - he said so angrily that he had to stop himself from flying at him.

- I don't understand anything that's going on - he says with a face that makes Alan feel repulsed and want to vomit, but what he does has more effect than a lot of scandal, he starts to laugh at that imbecile's face.

Cauã's face, drowsy, looking like someone who'd spent the night awake, his eyes red from drinking so much they turned the color of tomatoes, and anger showed in his expression.

Alan felt afraid there, he wasn't going to bow his head to anyone, especially not to a fucking man who didn't deserve it.

- You swear you don't know - he paused, waiting for him to say something, but the rest of his patience was gone, and he began to throw the truth in his face - You spent the night out cheating on me, but that's just the tip of the iceberg, you did it on our wedding anniversary, that's when the curtains that covered the truth came down, revealing the real you.

As soon as Alan had thrown up everything that had been stuck in his throat for long enough, even though it was only early in the morning, he felt that something was bothering him, but he didn't know what the source of his discomfort was, which consequently caused him a certain amount of pain. Alan felt that he could collapse at any moment, and he forced himself to hold on until at least Cauã left. He didn't want him to see him weakened, because he was sure that he would humiliate him, and he was already fed up with him, with his humiliations, jokes and belittling.

That morning there was a reason to get rid of a burden that tormented him and he was mistaken for thinking it was love, but it was actually comfort, an unhealthy situation in which Alan thought he was inferior.

There he knew for sure that Cauã, who was the inferior one and who had never valued him enough, was wrong to think he could change him, but he found out the hard way that people never change.

Cauã made him believe that he was worthless, that no one would want him except himself, but his arguments came true when he heard a distant voice. - Since you want me to leave, I'll go, but you'll be alone - He was so distracted that he hadn't realized that the indigent man had gone to the exit, and that he hadn't missed the opportunity to give his final pinprick, but he hadn't counted on it no longer getting to him. He paused, then took courage and said:

- I'm not alone.

- So are you going to call whoever kicked you out? - The bastard asked me.

- No, I don't need them, I've got friends who are everything to me - He rebuts and hears her laugh.

- "Nobody cares about you, you're nothing and you never will be." As soon as he finishes throwing his curse Alan feels weakened, but then realizes that in fact everything he's said all these years has been about him, not Alan.

- "No," he says firmly.

- No what? - Cauã asks.

- Everything you say is a lie, at least to a certain extent - Alan says, pausing, taking a deep breath to find the courage to continue - You always say that I'm alone, that I have no one, but the truth is that you have nothing, that no one cares what a scumbag son of a bitch you are, now I see it and you can't change that, so get out of my house and out of my life.

It was at this moment that Alan saw his "perfect" world collapse in front of him. During the four years he had never thought he would experience this moment, the loneliness that took over his being made him collapse right there on the floor in the middle of the coffee table and the sofa, the tears flowed abundantly, even though Alan didn't want to, he didn't understand why he was crying.

He was suffering, it hurt so much that he couldn't name the pain he was feeling. A per-tinent question came to mind.

"Was I suffering for someone who didn't fucking deserve it?" Even though he tried futilely to stop the tears, he didn't succeed, they kept falling as if they were meant to fall.

"I'm so tired of being here

Suppressed by all my childish fears

And if you have to leave, I wish that you would just leave

'Cause your presence still lingers here

And it won't leave me alone

These wounds won't seem to heal

This pain is just too real

There's just too much that time cannot erase"

My Immortal - Evanescence

Jo Ann entered the teachers' lounge to say good morning to everyone who was there, realizing that her long-time friend wasn't there, she wondered if the evening had been so good that Alan had missed the time.

The days that passed were more tiring than usual, but as always she kept that to herself. Yesterday, she had spoken to her friend, and she had noticed from the phone call that he was beaming, which had taken her mind off things a little, even though she knew that her husband was worthless. As in every phone call with Alan, she had said too much, which left her with the impression that she had given herself away, despite the fact that they had been friends for over ten years and that they knew each other better than they knew themselves, Jo tried at all costs to appear to be fine, but to tell the truth she was trying to live as she had before all this happened.

She sat down in a chair in the middle of the table, "it was the only one available at the moment" and put her handbag on her lap. Ann's recollection of what Alan did probably caused her to burst into laughter, and everyone in the room looked at her as if she was crazy for laughing like one. Jo Ann settles into her chair to wait for the rest of the contingent to arrive.

About five minutes before the bell, her phone starts ringing incessantly, leaving the madwoman searching inside the bag that Alan has nicknamed Mother Lucinda's Dumpster.

After a lot of searching, finding things that she thought were lost, she finally found her cell phone, but the call had already been dropped, and being the curious person that she is, she decided to check who had called.

Before she could see who it was, the phone started ringing again and she thought it was Alan who was calling, but she immediately thought that my no-frills friend wanted to warn her that he was going to be late, so she answered the call.

- Hi! I know what you're calling about - Ann pauses and thinks she hears a sniffle, but decides to continue - You're going to be late. I'll let you know here.

- I'm not going to work today - As soon as he told her, she was sure he was crying or still crying - I'm in no condition to work.

- What happened, Al? - She asks, but he stays silent, Jo hears him start to cry again to add to his despair - I'm on my way. And don't give me that you don't have to because I can see you're not well.

With no patience to wait to hear what Alan was going to say, she ended the call, threw her cell phone into her bag and hurriedly got up from her chair, frightening those in the room. They even tried to ask her what had happened, but she didn't give them a chance to ask her, and then she would send a message to the principal telling her why she was in such a hurry.

- Today I'm not coming back - It was the only thing that came to mind, worrying about Alan didn't allow her to think properly about what she was doing, one day Alan would kill her, she was sure of it, someone asked what was going on, and when Jo Ann heard her, she had already left the building.

Oblivious to everything around her, she didn't even realize that she had arrived at the parking lot. Her thoughts are in a whirlwind of possibilities as to what could have happened to put Alan in that state.

"I swear, if that snoring son of a bitch laid a finger on my friend, I'll end his race." It was with this thought that she started the car and headed towards her friend/brother's apartment.

The first thing Jo Ann notices is that the door to the apartment is ajar, which makes her think the worst, afraid of how she would find her friend, she takes a deep breath and goes inside, fear dominating her body making her tremble in anticipation.

Many scenarios played out in her mind of what had probably happened to cause Alan to call her in the state he was in, her eyes watering at the thought of what had happened to Al.

- Al, where are you? - Jo speaks up for fear of finding him unconscious or something, anxiety takes hold of her, her heart racing in anxiety mixed with fear, not being able to think straight, again all the possibilities come to mind, to increase her despair even more

- I'm in the kitchen - As soon as she hears her voice broken by crying, Jo Ann doesn't walk much less run, what she's done doesn't fit in with anything, she's run like hell through the living room to finally reach her destination, but the state in which she found her friend surprised her. Her friend was curled up in front of the sink, his head between his knees, shedding all the tears possible and impossible.

She had stopped at the doorway because she had been startled to find her friend there, frail and broken. Before she went in, she analyzed the scene before her eyes: he was like that, his wedding ring in front of him.

It was at that moment that Jo Ann realized what had happened. She walked over to him and sat down next to him, hugging him.

She put Alan's head on her lap, he continued to cry for a long time, Ann couldn't say how long her friend had been crying, but when she realized that Alan's breathing had become slower and that he had fallen asleep, she could finally breathe a little easier.

The whole situation worried her, what had happened must have been very serious for her friend to be in the state he was in, at least now that he was asleep he had finally stopped crying.

Alan woke up without remembering that he had fallen asleep, at least he hadn't slept on the floor, he felt something soft under his head. He didn't remember falling asleep, but he woke up on something soft, at least his head was still on the floor, and he soon realized that his head was in someone's lap.

The memories of the last twenty-four hours came flooding back into his mind, and he felt like collapsing again, but he had to be strong and bear it, he had made the decision himself, so now he had to bear the consequences.

- Now that you've calmed down, you can tell me why I found you in this state." The person spoke so that he could recognize that it was Jo Ann who was there, and it came to mind that he had called her.

"Shit! That crazy woman had dropped everything to see if I was all right." He thought.

- What had that son of a bitch done? - She asked, looking like she wanted to kill him.

- Stop talking like that... - Alan said and was interrupted.

- Are you still going to defend him? - Jo Ann asked indignantly.

- Are you going to let me finish or are you going to keep interrupting me, and first of all I'm not going to defend him, because he fucked up - she said, sitting down next to him.

- Then come on and get it over with. You know how anxious and worried your friend is to have found you like this, I've never seen you shed a tear - she shot off like a parrot, all dramatic, to his side.

Alan took a deep breath, if she was here then there was nothing better than taking advantage of her kindness, he told her everything that had happened over the last twenty-four hours, to his delight Jo Ann remained silent while he told her, as soon as he finished, her eyes bulged with surprise, it seemed that she really hadn't expected him to do such a thing.

- So you did it and I wanted to kill the bastard - she says after a few moments in silence - But you haven't explained one thing to me, why did I find you like this?

He swallowed the saliva that had built up, he was still in a whirlwind of emotions, but he forced himself to calm down, to try to express what he felt and why his friend had found him in that state.

- To tell you the truth - he paused, trying to reorganize his thoughts and understand his feelings - I know you found me crying, you must be thinking it was regret for what I did... - Jo Ann interrupted him.

- "It's the most obvious conclusion." He looked at her sternly, making her swallow. I won't interrupt any longer.

- But the truth is that it's a cry of relief, of knowing that I'll never make a fool of myself again - He paused to moisten his dry lips - I finally realized that he had put a blindfold over my eyes, not letting me see anything - Alan paused again, lifting me off the kitchen floor and heading for the living room, his friend was already losing patience with all these pauses in the story he was telling.

- Where are you going, Al? - Jo Ann asked me.

- I'm going to the sofa, my butt hurts from sitting on the floor," she said, causing her to laugh. - I curse as soon as I stop in front of the sofa.

- Oh my God. What now?

- I forgot that the sofa is soaking wet." As soon as she finished, they both burst out laughing.

- So let's go to the guest room, which is better known as my room.

- It's actually your room.

Arriving in the bedroom, Alan jumps on the bed without a second thought.

- Now you can continue - Jo Ann says, sitting down on the left edge.

- I realized that what he was saying to me was actually a mirror of what he is, I think I've come to my senses, I don't know why I'm in this state - Alan said, finishing what he wanted to say.

- Now we're going to my place, you need to clear your head - Jo Ann said as she headed out of the room, and when she realized that her friend hadn't gotten up yet, she turned around.

- If you don't come, I'll leave you there - she said, trying to rouse him from his thoughts, but realizing it was no use, she went back to the foot of the bed. Alan only realized that Jo Ann hadn't left when she hugged him - Now tell me what's going on in that pretty head of yours. Because I know you haven't said everything.

He shrugs his shoulders, condemning himself for the fact that his friend knows him so well that she can tell when he's trying to hide something.

- Shit! Why do you have to know me better than I do?

- Well, because I'm your best friend - she said, giving him a nice cuddle - Don't complain that you do that to me too. As the saying goes, lead doesn't hurt. Now stop winding me up and spit it out, you creature of God. - Jo Ann said impatiently.

- Nothing too serious," he says, making her frown and stare at him.

- Hmmm! Tell me something else Alan.

- But seriously, I was just thinking about what my life is going to be like from now on.

- Really?

- You of all people know that I can't lie, but I'm serious.

- Let's get out of bed, take a shower and come home with me.