The rumbling was rough for you. Not only rough mentally, but physically. Having your larynx crushed wasn't a part of the plan at all. This leaves you mostly silent. Speaking hurts, and when you can speak, the noise is very raspy and unattractive. Something you've been afraid of all your life.

Being inches away from more than just friends with Jean was completely erased from your mind. Jean deserved somebody who could speak. Who could tell him how much they loved him. But you can't. And even after that, Jean still smiled at you.

Before the rumbling, he had promised to be your husband no matter what happened. And he followed through, putting a ring on your finger a week after.

"I'm home," he calls, dropping off a bag of fruits on your shared counter. It feels weird finally sharing a house. It feels weird knowing everything worked out the way you wanted it to.