The second thing I did, over the course of six months, was slowly remove Kat from every shared part of our lives. I unfollowed her on Instagram — not blocked, just unfollowed, so she would not get a notification. I stopped responding to her texts within thirty minutes, then within a day, then within three days, then not at all. I declined one dinner invitation with a legitimate

work excuse. I declined the second one by saying I was "a little overwhelmed and need space." I declined the third one by not responding. She sent me a birthday card in October. I did not acknowledge it. She sent me a Christmas card in December. I did not acknowledge it. She texted me in January, on the anniversary of her brother's death — the day we had historically always talked — and I did not respond to that either. And that was the text that broke her. She called me at 9 PM that night. She was crying. She said, "What are you doing? Please. I have been trying for six months. Please."