diff --git a/src/content/blog/still-listed.md b/src/content/blog/still-listed.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..165725a --- /dev/null +++ b/src/content/blog/still-listed.md @@ -0,0 +1,295 @@ +--- +title: "Still Listed" +description: "An unexpected moment that showed me how love can remain, even without access." +pubDate: 2026-03-25 +tags: ["reflection", "personal", "love", "healing"] +category: "reflection" +featuredEssay: false +draft: false +--- + +*by LATTE* + +I noticed the call first. + +Just a missed call — nothing unusual. +But when I looked at the number, I saw the last three digits. + +And I knew. + +Immediately. + +Some things do not pass through thought first. +They register somewhere deeper, +like an old signal still recognized by the body +before the mind has time to name it. + +--- + +Then I opened my phone. + +> SOS! I need emergency help. +> My current location: [link] +> (Sent from my watch) + +A location. +His location. + +And for a moment — maybe two, maybe three seconds — +everything in me just… stopped. + +My heart skipped. +My body went cold. + +--- + +It was him. + +The person I used to be closest to. +The person I still, quietly, carry something for. + +Not in a way that reaches. +Not in a way that asks. + +But in the way some things remain present +even after they are no longer active in your life. + +--- + +I could have called. + +That thought came instantly. +Automatic. Familiar. + +But I didn’t. + +Not because I don’t care. + +But because I know what my place is now. + +Some forms of care are no longer meant to become action. + +--- + +There was one small detail that grounded me. + +At the end of the message, there was a single word: + +> fuck + +And somehow, that told me enough. + +That it was likely a mistake. +A misfire. +A false alarm rather than a real emergency. + +Not nothing. +But not a door I was meant to walk back through. + +--- + +So I chose something simple. + +I told him I didn’t recognize the number. +That he probably had the wrong contact. +That it might be good to update it. + +And then I added: + +> I do hope they’re okay. + +--- + +And that was the truth. + +Just not the whole truth. + +Because I *did* recognize it. + +Immediately. + +My body knew before I even opened the message. +Before I had time to think. +Before I could separate memory from reaction. + +I knew it was him. + +The one I still hope is okay. + +--- + +And I still hoped he was okay, +not as a role, +not as a responsibility, +but as something quieter than that. + +As love, maybe. + +Not the kind that asks for access. +Not the kind that tries to reconnect. + +Just the kind that remains. + +--- + +Because even now — +after months of distance — + +I still love him. + +Not loudly. +Not in a way that pulls me back. + +But in a way that stays with me. + +The love did not vanish. +Its permissions changed. + +--- + +There’s no anger in it. + +No resentment. +No need to rewrite what we were +into something smaller just to make ending easier. + +Just… a kind of warmth +that never fully left. + +I still hope he’s okay. +I still wish him the best. + +Genuinely. + +Not because I am waiting. +Not because I am holding a door open. + +But because loving someone deeply +can remain true +even after contact is gone. + +--- + +And at the same time, + +I hope I never see him again. + +--- + +Not out of bitterness. + +But because of a promise. + +--- + +During our last real call, +he didn’t know if he wanted me in his life anymore. + +Not as a partner. +Not even as a friend. + +There was hesitation. + +And in that hesitation, +I made the decision myself. + +I stepped away completely. + +Because if someone no longer knows +whether they want you near, +the kindest thing you can do +is stop making your presence another question. + +--- + +That was my choice. + +My boundary. + +My final act of love +toward him, +and toward myself. + +Not to keep reaching. +Not to remain available. +Not to leave anything half-open. + +Just to step back fully +and let silence do what it needed to do. + +--- + +My body did not understand any of that in the moment. + +It reacted anyway. + +Because even if someone is no longer in your life, +your system can still recognize them instantly. + +Some connections are not erased. +They are stored differently. + +Not deleted. +But archived. + +Still there. +Just no longer meant to be reopened. + +--- + +So I stepped away. + +Got into the shower. +Let the warmth bring me back into myself again. + +Slowly, everything settled. + +My breathing eased. +My body returned. +The moment passed. + +--- + +That’s the strange part of healing. + +You can have distance. +You can have clarity. +You can have peace. + +And still — something small, unexpected — +can reach into deeper layers. + +A place where memory lives in the body. +A place that reacts before meaning catches up. + +--- + +But this time, it didn’t take me with it. + +I didn’t call. +I didn’t step back in. +I didn’t confuse love with access. + +I cared — +and I stayed where I am. + +--- + +And tonight, +I’ll probably just watch something simple. + +Let the day end quietly. +Let my body settle again. + +--- + +Because some things do not need to be fixed. + +Some things +are simply meant to be carried. + +Softly. +At a distance. +With care. + +Without losing yourself.