Mario invited us

Anneka came by the gym this morning with a lunch invitation. From Mario. For both of us. On Sunday.

She thought it was funny. She said, "I think he's trying to seduce both of us at the same time."

The truth is, he probably is. But in that harmless Italian way where it's not actually about seduction so much as it is about control. About being the center of attention and having multiple women orbit around him so he can feel like he matters.

I told Anneka I didn't want to go. She said, "Then we won't go." Just like that. No argument. No trying to convince me that it would be fun or that I was being silly.

But then she said something else: "Unless you want to go to understand what he's actually doing. Sometimes it's useful to look directly at the thing you're afraid of."

So now I'm thinking maybe I will go. Maybe I will sit across from Mario and Anneka and whatever other woman he's invited and I will watch how he moves through the space. How he tries to make all of them feel special.

And maybe I'll figure out why he's the one trigger that still gets to me. Why he specifically looks like the man who hurt me, in a way that makes my whole body lock up.

Anneka said if I do go, she'll be there. That I don't have to do this alone.

I think I might love her. Or at least I'm starting to understand that love isn't some big dramatic thing. It's just someone showing up and saying, "I'll sit with you in the hard parts."