Bernice gave them a baleful look, as if to say, Are we walking, or are we spending all day apologizing?

“No, I’m sorry,” said Daniel. “I need to let you do things in your own time. I didn’t mean to pressure you, or rush you. I understand that our situations are different, I do. I can wait until you’re ready, Rebecca. It turns out that being in a box with you is way better than being outside the box without you.”

“It is? Are you sure?”

“Way better,” said Daniel. “Way, way better.”

Just like that, an enormous weight lifted itself from Rebecca’s shoulders and disappeared into the summer morning air. Just like that. Maybe everything didn’t have to be so hard after all.

The Gates of Hell were wrought-iron gates that used to lead to one of the mansions on the property, back when the mansions still stood. There was a rumor that the Gates were haunted, and that late at night you could see the heads of decapitated family members on the spikes, even though no murders had ever taken place on the estate to anyone’s knowledge. Nevertheless, Rebecca shivered and tried not to look at the gates.

“Are you worried about the decapitated heads again?” Daniel asked.

“Maybe a little,” she admitted.

Daniel glanced up. “If we saw the ghosts of murdered people, I would do everything in my power to protect you.” He stepped behind Rebecca and wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on the top of her head. This was one of the things about dating someone new after years and years with the same person: you got to see how your body would fit with someone else’s, and sometimes there were unexpected surprises in that. Peter had been very tall, and would have had to stoop to rest his chin on Rebecca’s head. It was never worth the effort.

Immediately Rebecca felt disloyal for thinking that about Peter. He would have stooped for her all day long if she’d wanted him to.

They passed through the gates and began to walk along the dirt path.

Daniel tapped the side of his thigh for Bernice to catch up—she tended to lag, especially early in the morning. She was not a morning person. Obviously she wasn’t a person at all.

“Oh!” Rebecca said. “Here’s what I wanted to tell you. You’re not going to believe this. I just found out that Alexa has this entire YouTube channel called Silk Stockings. She dresses up in pretty, tasteful clothes, and she sits in this chair in her bedroom, and she explains things. Terms. Economic terms, things about the stock market.”

“Oh yeah?” said Daniel. He stopped and turned toward Rebecca. “Like what sorts of things?”

Rebecca named the topics she remembered: stop-loss orders, crypto currency investments. “Blockchain, maybe?” she said. “Is that a thing?”