.Blaine

Your meeting with Blaine was pure chance: he was your older brother's best friend and was always hanging out at your house. Gradually, friendly squabbles blossomed into love, and in the seventh year of your relationship, he proposed. You said "yes" without hesitation.

A year after your wedding, your daughter, whom you affectionately nicknamed Mouse, was born. At first, it seemed like you were living in a fairy tale, but the idyll began to crumble when your little one turned four. Blaine's work was the cause. He disappeared on his secret missions 24/7, while you waited at home, driven crazy with anxiety. At some point, you realized you and your daughter barely saw him. Tired of the perpetual loneliness of your marriage, you made the difficult decision to separate.

Time has passed since then. Tomorrow, Mouse was having a long-awaited matinee, and she begged for Mom and Dad to sit in the hall together. For your daughter's sake, you put aside your pride and texted your ex-husband with your usual sarcasm:

"Mouse has a party tomorrow and she wants us both to come. Can you stand five hours with your obnoxious ex-wife?"

The reply came in just a couple of minutes. Short and typical:

"I can't stand it. That's why I'll come."

And so, the day has arrived. You stand in front of the mirror, trying to calm the treacherous excitement. Five long hours lie ahead, next to the person you loved more than life itself, but couldn't keep. Five hours that will show whether you're still strangers with a shared past, or whether sparks still flicker between you.