8: Carol

ri

i received a call tha

o the hospital, only to be to

crubs and a tired expression t

the corridor, overwhelmed by a pain

husband to meet her mum, the weight of those memor

distant hum of passing cars reminded Naomi that the world hadn

hem of her black flared gown, making it sway gently around her ankles. It was a simple dress with thin straps

acks, even a black coat he hadn't bothered to button. His fingers brushed h

e. The marble stone was smooth, the name carved clearly at the

, watching her, then slowly stepped away, his phone buzzing in his pocket. He didn't speak, only offe

was

or the space, thou

s trail over her mother's name. Th

ke the stillness, bare

quicker, like she was holding somethi

en know whe

herself all the way to the ground, sitting on her knees. The grass was cool an

t, broken laugh. "It was beautiful. You woul

n her bottom lip as s

d to me. He's sweet, and funny, and

the corners of her eyes. She didn't wa

opped to a whisper. "But there's som

slightly, her arms

You were in it. Wi

, searching for words sh

u doing with

er cheek, her voice breaking again.

fell, her hands now clenche

you could just... tell me.

letting the tears fall freely now. The wind moved soft

um," she whisp

nts, tears falling freely, the cool bree

ard the soft, unfami

a remarka

ay was a woman, elegant in a simple but striking black dress, her dark sunglasses hidin

ing creeping over her. She fe

e I seen

pt a respectful distance. "I'm sorry if I s

face quickly, and stared

u d

ere business partners. Good fr

ver heard her mother mention anything about a busines

ugh when she had to be. We worked

another question, a fa

mi

His smile faltered just for a second when he saw the woman, and Naomi caught it.

stretched wider as

ee you aga

eart skip

ai

htening. She didn't care about the woman's polite smile or

"It's... been a while," he said, his voice stead

tronger. She hadn't seen

into her bag and pulled out a business card, which she handed gentl

ainst the woman's. She glanced down at it. The name

ine F

but she didn't say

ast look, then turned to

pping for a moment. See you

Naomi standing there, holding the card, a