And for the first time—
he backed off.
That night, Peter sat across from me.
“You’re doing it,” he said. “Standing your ground.”
“I should’ve done it sooner.”
“You’re doing it now.”
Then he added something I didn’t expect.
“When you’re ready… you don’t have to stay married to me.”
I looked at him. “Then why did you do it?”
He met my eyes.
“To make sure you got here.”
Later that evening, I watched my kids playing in the yard.
Laughing. Running. Safe.
And for the first time in a long time—
I didn’t feel like I was barely holding everything together.
I felt steady.
Present.
Strong.
And I realized something important.
Peter didn’t save me.
He just made sure I had the chance to save myself
