I was stunned. Why was Lauren crying?

I handed her some tissues. “What’s the matter? Was it something I said?”

Lauren quickly waved off my concern. It saddened me to see her carefully applied makeup start to run. She had always appeared graceful and friendly, much like a flight attendant. What could cause someone who cared about her looks to cry in front of me?

She took the tissue paper and blotted her face. Her red fingernails were eye-catching, but that didn’t stop me from noticing her shoulders were shaking as she sobbed.

I promised to be a genuine friend to Lauren. Before this, I had resentment toward her and doubted her friendship. Instead of saying anything, I let her vent her frustrations.

When she pulled herself together, she dried off her remaining tears. “I’m sorry you had to see that.”

“Hey, we all have our pain. Some solve them privately, while others must do so publicly—for instance, me. Everyone knows about my goddamn divorce,” I said. “They labeled me an abused