I stood with my coat still on for too long

Dear Delyara, I came home and didn’t take my coat off straight away. I just stood there, half inside the evening, half still carrying the outside with me. I think some part of me didn’t want to fully arrive yet. Because arriving means the day becomes undeniable — what’s done, what’s not, what mood followed me home, what the room asks, what my body is saying now that the noise has lowered. So I stayed in that in-between state longer than necessary. It felt strangely honest. Like admitting I needed a softer landing than the day had given me.