anonymous because I don't really know where else to put this. I'm 35. My girlfriend is 25. We've been together almost a year. She's bright, funny, has a lot of friends, and somehow knows about three new internet arguments before I've had coffee. I try to keep up. I watched the anime she recommended and had to pause twice to look up why everyone was devastated. I also mispronounced the name of an app she uses and she laughed for a full minute. Last night I was with her friends and they were kind. No one did anything wrong. I just suddenly felt like an old piece of furniture someone had moved into a very lively room. She says she likes me. She says I smell like sun-warmed wood. She falls asleep holding my shirt sleeve when I work late. I know I'm lucky. I also keep wondering if one day she'll meet someone younger, lighter, easier to have fun with. Is a ten-year gap something people grow tired of later, even when they mean it at the start?