Alex didn’t say a word. He just nodded, almost too quickly, as though agreeing before he could change his mind. I thought he was just being polite. I had no idea what was going on inside his head.

The wedding was held at a fancy country club on the edge of town. On the drive there, Alex sat silently beside me in his little suit, staring out the window.

“You okay?” I asked him.

“Yeah,” he said. But his voice was flat, and he kept fiddling with something in his pocket. I didn’t push.

When we arrived, the place looked like something out of a magazine. White chairs lined the lawn, flowers draped across a wooden arch, and a string quartet played softly. Guests mingled in expensive outfits, sipping champagne.