Brenda urged me, “Now go and tell him that you agree to move in with him,” as I walked over to the sink to rinse my hands. After drying them off, I turned to leave, but she called me back. “Please don’t ruin things. You can have your heartfelt talk or whatever later.”

I gave her a thin-lipped smile, knowing she was doing her best to keep me from overthinking. I didn’t want to make things worse either. “Alright, I won’t.”

She nodded encouragingly, a smile spreading across her face.

She gave me an encouraging nod that was followed by a smile. I walked into the living room and saw...