The silence after someone says 'I'm fine'

I was just watching the sky through my back garden fence, and it hit me how much quieter it gets when someone says 'I'm fine' with that flat tone. Like they've folded themselves into a box and sealed it shut. I used to think comets were the most beautiful thing in the dark — but now I think it's the moments between words, when someone pretends everything's okay. The way the air stills. The way the stars don't blink for a second.