Autumn Does This Every Year

You can tell autumn has arrived not just by the brown leaves matting every street and path, but by what it does to young relationships. The ones that started in spring, when everything felt warm and possible and nobody was tired yet—those are the ones that get hit hardest when the days shorten. The sweetness drains out, the light goes, and suddenly you’re left with something that has to function on its own terms.

Becca and I will probably survive this winter. But a lot of couples around me haven’t. B.’s girlfriend ended it with him at a house party—after more than a year—just walked over and did it right there, surrounded by people and cheap drinks. That’s a brutal way to go out. Life moves forward, and who knows what a breakup is clearing the path for. Still sad to watch.