He reached out and held mine first.
"Faye, you have a choice too..."
"Okay... I love you, Cliff. But give me some time to digest all these." That is the best reply I could come up with. I never intend to belittle his past. And I would not destroy the depth of what he had shared to me by saying a lot of meaningless words at the moment.
I stood up from the floor and gave Cliff a brief hug. He was sitting on the floor, stoic. I grabbed my bag and walked out of his apartment. As I close the door, I heard a faint voice from inside "... and I love you."
It wasn't me who needed some time, I walked away to give him time. As far as I am concerned, I will be back.
When you have nothing to lose, nothing to prove and nothing to hide, that is when you are walking in your destiny.