The Tear Stopping Lab Page 11   cocktail napkins and told her that he understood that he didn’t really know her, but he might be in love with her anyway. The day they moved in together was a cold day in December. After the movers delivered all their furniture, they went and got their bellies pierced together on St. Marks Place. In the evening, they hooked their bellies to each other, took a self-portrait with the timer, and sent their friends the photo as a Christmas greeting.   She closed her eyes and turned off the shower water. She never thought of Stephano in a lover’s way again. She wrapped a towel around herself and felt so clean. She stared at herself in the mirror and thought of all the little things she had to do. She’d have to transfer the lease to her name, or maybe get a new apartment, one she could afford by herself. She remembered a DJ at Sway telling her he was moving to London. She wondered who was going to take his Chelsea apartment. She could definitely see herself living in Chelsea. Maybe she could get his lease. Oh, shit, there was the whole marriage thing, too. They married a year ago because Stephano was from Italy and he needed a green card to work. She would have to file for a divorce, consult with a lawyer, tell her friends they broke up, find someone else to go to movies with… Why didn’t she cry? Why wasn’t she more hurt? Why was she not angry with him? She thought she loved him too. Why was she not heart broken? All she remembers thinking of is all the annoying errands that their break-up created. Asleep that night with her shower-wet dreadlocks spread on the pillow, a fresh “To Do” list emerged in her mind.   “Veronica Welsh” The receptionist says. She stands up instinctively, and looks at the people around her. “But you were here before me,” Veronica says to the weeping woman to her right.