Those words struck Danielle with physical force. The color drained from her face, her heart clenching painfully as her grip on her phone tightened.
Kirsten was right. She saw things with a brutal clarity, and her words were not without reason. In front of her, Alexander had always been calm and emotionally steady. His emotions seemed so contained, so devoid of highs and lows, that he almost seemed like an unfeeling monster. It had made her forget that he was a patient with severe depression. It had made her forget Rebecca's warnings.
“Dani, I’m not saying this to pressure you,” Kirsten continued. “I just want you to face reality. This situation can't be decided by just one of you. It has to be decided by both of you. You both act like you’re doing what’s best for the other person, but in reality, you’re just torturing each other. Think about it, isn't that the truth? You could have a future together, you could both be happy. Why not do that? Why insist on this mutual torment, all under the banner of self-sacrifice?”
Kirsten pressed on. “He thinks you’ll be happy with Gian, and you think you should just follow his lead because he has his own ‘pace’ and you don’t want to push him. But don’t you see that you’re just letting each other slip away?”
Danielle bit her lower lip, remaining silent as she stared down at the tall, imposing figure who looked so cool and detached from the world. To anyone else, he was the revered Mr. Davidson.
“I just don’t want to watch you struggle and suffer anymore,” Kirsten replied. “As your friend, I still feel indignant for all the pain you went through. I can’t be the one to tell you to forgive Alexander. But as an outsider, I can analyze the problem for you, because I don’t want to see you in pain. What you do next is up to you.”
Kirsten’s voice grew heavy again. “Dani, I’m going to remind you one last time. Alexander isn’t a normal person. His calm, his normality—it’s an illusion. He could be gone from this world, from you and Niki, at any moment. If you’re truly sure you can accept that, then go ahead and keep being stubborn.”

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