I hadn’t slept. Not really.
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My mind had been chewing on everything—Sharice’s slap, the way her eyes cut through me like I was the villain… maybe I was. Maybe I’d been lying to myself this whole time about what marriage was supposed to feel like.
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I thought the ocean would help. Something about the sound of waves made it easier to think. But I didn’t come here to think. I came here to feel… something. Anything other than guilt.
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Then I saw her.
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She sat cross-legged in the sand, eyes closed, palms resting gently on her knees. The sun was just starting to rise, casting that early gold over everything. Her belly — round and soft — rose and fell steady like the tide.
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She looked like peace.
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Something I hadn’t tasted in years.
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I must’ve been staring, because her eyes opened slowly and landed on me. Calm. Clear.
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“If you’re gonna stand there like that, might as well sit.”
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I blinked. “What?”
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She nodded toward the spot beside her. “Sit. Breathe. Try being still for once.”
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My first instinct was to say nah, I’m good, but something in me — the part I don’t listen to enough — told me to shut up and sit down.
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So I did.
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I dropped into the sand next to her, stiff and unsure. She didn’t speak again, just closed her eyes and went right back to breathing like nothing else existed.
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And I followed her lead.
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Slow breath in.
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Slow breath out.
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Again.
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For the first time in months… the noise in my head lowered to a dull hum. And that silence? That silence felt like a gift.
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I didn’t know who she was, or what she was carrying — both inside her and in her spirit — but I knew I’d remember her long after that sunrise.
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Later That Night – Dom’s Hotel Room
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Scene: Dom talks to his twin daughters, Amaya and Alani, on FaceTime.
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The screen lit up with both my girls side by side, bonneted and fresh-faced, just like they’ve always been. College life hadn’t changed that.
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“Daddy,” Amaya grinned. “You look like you got some sleep for once.”
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“Yeah,” Alani added. “You don’t look like death warmed over.”
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I laughed. “Thanks. Appreciate the love.”
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There was a pause. The air shifted.
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“You okay?” Amaya asked, her voice softer now.
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I exhaled slowly. “I’m… trying to be. Just needed to step away for a minute. Clear my head.”
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“Because of Mom?” Alani’s question was direct. They got that from me.
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I hesitated.
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Then: “Yeah. Partly. I just… needed space. Needed to figure out who I am outside all the noise.”
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They were quiet, but it wasn’t awkward. It was like they were both collecting their thoughts.
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“Daddy,” Amaya finally said. “We been knew y’all weren’t happy.”
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That hit me harder than anything else could’ve.
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“You… you did?”
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Alani nodded. “We’re not kids anymore, Daddy. We saw the arguments. Heard the cold silences. The way you stopped laughing.”
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My chest tightened. “I didn’t want y’all to see that.”
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“We did. And we knew you were staying for us. But if you gotta leave to find peace… do it,” Amaya said, her voice steady. “Don’t let guilt keep you miserable.”
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I swallowed the lump forming in my throat.
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“Y’all are my heart. I never wanted to hurt you.”
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“You didn’t. Staying in a toxic marriage just taught us that love ain’t supposed to look like that.” Alani gave a small smile. “But leaving? That could teach us something different.”
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I stared at the screen, speechless.
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For the first time in years, I felt seen.
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They weren’t little girls anymore.
They were women.
And they were giving me permission to be human.
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“I love you both,” I said, voice low, heavy with emotion.
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“We love you more,” they said together, just like they used to when they were little.
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After we hung up, I sat in that quiet for a long time.
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That woman on the beach, that peace I felt near her… maybe it wasn’t just a fluke.
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Maybe it was the start of something I never thought I’d deserve.
