“He wanted to question me. He wanted to know what I thought of the way we were living, if I really thought I was happy. All I could answer was that I had always considered the years we had spent putting him through school an investment in the future. He said that he had been thinking about it, about us and what our life would be like. He said that he didn’t think he could see any change in the way we were living. With each other. I thought then that he was going to say that he wanted us to make a new effort, but he didn’t say anything. Not for a while. Then he said, ‘I think we should break up.’”

The rest was not clear. She could not remember what she said, or did, or what he said. She thought he meant a separation. She wanted to think that he wanted them to live apart, take a “breather” from marriage.

“To tell the truth, Joe, I don’t know what I thought. Everything was falling out from under me. I know I did scream at him. I was sure he was seeing her again. He was sorry; he didn’t want it to be this way, but it was what he thought had to be. Finally—I remember this—I said that I didn’t want to talk about it. I ran out of the room and then, later, I went back to the living room and finished my work.