She had played her last card, and we had called her bluff.

“Let’s go, Sarah,” Derek said.

I stood up and picked up my notebook.

We walked out of the lounge, leaving them alone in the quiet room.

As we reached the lobby, we heard the faint click of the heavy wooden door behind us.

Through the glass side panel, I saw my mother stand up.

She didn’t look at my father.

She walked out the side exit of the building, her head held high, but her steps hurried.

She was leaving in silence, without a final word, without a look back.

She had nothing left to say.

Derek and I walked down the steps of the Faculty Club and back onto the campus path.

The air felt cooler now as the afternoon sun began to dip behind the hills.

“Are you okay?” I asked, looking at him.

Derek took a deep breath, his chest rising and falling slowly.

“I feel like I can finally breathe,” he said.

He looked at me, and for the first time, there was no tension in his eyes.