[ WP ] Begin with the sentence , `` I am alone , but I am happy '' .

I am alone, but I am happy. I do n't know why other people like to have company. If you're alone, there's no one to distract you - or to remind you. I work better that way. 
 
 I check my watch out of habit. Not that it does much good, of course. It has n't worked for years, but making the most of it removes some of the guilt. 
 
 Although the light is dim, I can still make out the words written on the paper in front of me. It's not something I need to do - I've read the same words I've read everyday day for the last ten years - and so I know them off by heart. 
 
 It's funny. I've waited so long for a fleeting moment, but I purse my lips, knowing that it will be worth it. Wo n't it? The flicker of doubt unnerves me, but I ca n't afford to back out now. 
 
 My thoughts are interrupted by the sound of the church bells ringing. To those that bother to listen, they dutifully inform their audience that it's 11 AM. It's time. 
 
 I walk slowly towards my target destination. My strides are measured - I ca n't let my nerves show. 
 
 Before I know it, I'm standing in front of the house in question, and I knock loudly. I ca n't back away. 
 
 An elderly man answers the door, and a hint of recognition betrays his otherwise stony face. 
 
 `` Ten years ago,'' I stutter, reading off the crumpled paper. `` Ten years ago, I took something from you, and I wanted to give it back to you today.'' 
 
 The man whose property I had taken looks at me distrustfully, and rightfully so. Nevertheless, I continue, `` and I hope you can forgive me.'' 
 
 I remove the watch from my wrist, and hand it to the man whose trust I had betrayed. 
 
 The silence before he replies seems like the longest wait of my life, but his reply is worth it: `` I forgive you, son.''
