Chapter 51

Gio and Kathy gave me a space when I landed in Melbourne. They let me do whatever I wanted, and never, I repeated, never once asked me about Theo or Levi. And I was grateful for that. I walked around the city even though I wasn’t familiar with it, but I liked being alone in a place where no one outside my brother and sister-in-law knew me. It helped me to see my relationship with Theo from a new perspective.

I intentionally cleared my schedule today because I wanted to spend the whole day at Carlton Gardens. Among all the parks scattered in Melbourne, Carlton Gardens was the only place I never visited during my previous trips. It had plenty of big trees and shaded spots, making me feel like I was in Europe. I didn’t mind going there alone, but my brother was on leave—whether he took it on purpose or it was his day off—and wanted to accompany me. Kathy even prepared a picnic for us since the weather was nice. It was the first time my brother specifically asked if he could come alon