stack of papers beside his plate.
When I brought the bill, I noticed his hands shaking.
I asked if he was okay.
He said yes.
I knew he wasn’t.
So instead of walking away, I brought him coffee.
Then I sat in the empty chair across from him for a few minutes.
I didn’t give him business advice.
I didn’t know anything about his company.
I just listened.
Before he left, I told him something my mother used to say:
“Don’t make a permanent decision on the worst night of your life.”
“Go home.”
“Sleep.”
“Tomorrow can still surprise you.”
I had forgotten about it.
Mr. Harrison hadn’t.
“You stayed after your shift ended,” he said.
“You called my wife because I was too embarrassed to call her myself.”
Now I remembered.
His wife had arrived later.
That was all.
At least, that
