[j&m] - Stella (2.12.2016).mp4 -

In the video, she stood up and walked toward the window, where the low winter sun was painting the floorboards in gold. She didn't look like a woman worried about the cold or the stacks of boxes behind her. She looked like someone who had just begun.

A woman, Stella, turned toward the camera. She was sitting on a half-unpacked crate, a mug of steaming tea in her hands. The date on the screen confirmed it: December 2, 2016. It was the day they had moved into their first home together. [J&M] - Stella (2.12.2016).mp4

The file sat at the bottom of an old backup drive, sandwiched between blurry vacation photos and forgotten university essays. Its title was clinical, almost robotic: . In the video, she stood up and walked