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Chapter Two: Forgiving... Myself? (It's Not Your Fault)
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY
▍JOSIAH HAPPILY WALKS DOWN THE HALLWAY TO HIS APARTMENT, humming to himself as he twirled his keys on his pointer finger.
After Aaliyah's little lesson about forgiveness, Josiah felt more at ease. He had a little pep in his step. From having lunch with his son and granddaughter, to walking around his local park.
He reached his apartment. But before he could put his keys in the lock, the door opens to reveal Aaliyah. To his surprise. Josiah smiles, but it soon fades once the woman in front of him didn't return it.
"What's good, Liyah? I thought you were gonna rest for a while." He said.
"Just come in. I gotta talk to you." Aaliyah responds before pulling Josiah inside, closing the door behind her. She leads him over to the living room, sitting down on the couch.
"Remember our little lesson about forgiveness?" She asked Josiah as he sits down next to her. He nods, making her continue her speech. "When I woke up, I felt something shift.." She started to say before shaking her head.
"It's like.. you're trying to suppress something." Aaliyah trailed off before reaching out to hold Josiah's hand. Before he could protest, Aaliyah opens her mouth to say something else.
"You've forgiven the person you held distain for.. but it's like, you still have something holding you back." She says before looking down at their hands. "That's when I figured it out.." She adds before moving her gaze up to Josiah's face.
"You haven't forgave yourself.. but then I asked myself, 'Why do you have to do that?'.."Aaliyah said, letting out a soft sigh. "You put yourself through self-punishment, thinking that you were at fault for what happened."
She stops herself before moving her hands to both sides of the man's face. "What happened to me wasn't your fault.." She trailed off, wiping the trail of tears from Josiah's face.
Josiah remained silent. He didn't even notice the tears in his eyes. He takes a deep breath before letting out a shaky sigh.
"But— but what if I didn't go to sleep, Liyah? What if I answered that phone?" He asked, making Aaliyah shake her head.
