Crawlspace

  ***

  Ten minutes later, the luggage had been loaded into the minivan and his daughter Emily had been kissed good-bye.

  Tom was turning away from his still-angry wife to head back towards the house when Kelly grabbed his hand, stopping him.

  She surprised him by putting her arms around him, holding him close to her for a moment.

  Then she kissed him.

  As she pressed her lips against his, he realized that it was the first time they had kissed in a very long time, maybe since he had lost his job. Had six months passed already? It was only a brief kiss, but still, it surprised him.

  Time really does fly, he thought, whether you’re having fun or not.

  Kelly climbed into the minivan and drove away without saying a word. Tom shivered in the bitter cold of the Pennsylvania morning air and waved goodbye until the red tail lights disappeared into the distance.

  The warmth of his wife’s lips still tingled on his own. He wondered what surprised him the most about that kiss: that it had happened in the first place, or that it had made him realize that he had no love left for her at all. Ten years of marriage, and love had left the building. Unlike his wife’s absence, however, he was pretty sure his feelings weren’t temporary.

  It mattered little either way, Tom figured, and he brushed the thought of the unexpected kiss aside.