red was the cold night a

le pain as my bod

. Jenkins, had pushed me from the

ered, his voice dripping with contempt.

ghed, her arm wrapp

e. Instead, I found them together, their bodies entwined on his office de

they, to protect their careers, their reputations

egret. Regret for loving him, for trusting

a sudd

hallway outside Mark' s office, the thermos of soup sti

phone. 9:00 PM.

hat had nothing to do with the buil

stand, I crept closer to the doo

ey were. Jus

hs locked in a passionate kiss. Her hands were tangled in his hair, hi

e was still there, a cold, hard stone in my chest, but the

a secon

t waste i

on the corner was the business contract Mark had been chasing for months, the one that would s

s didn'

e machine whirred to life, devouring the pages one by one, tur

e lens perfectly framing the scene through the crack. Mark ha

ic

ic

ic

ic

ic

y movements calm and methodical. Then, I turned and walked awa

t get

nt at 2 AM. The slam of the do

loud and demanding. "I'm starv

our. I would have gotten up immediately, gone to the kitc

om door closed, and didn't move. I s

om the living room. "A

hroom. A moment later, I heard the buzz of a phone

en it in my previous life, too, but it had m

miss you a

t life and my new present replaying in my mind. The fall, t

and picked up the shirt he had carelessly thrown over a chair. Th

g and yawning. When he saw the shirt

nervous laugh. "That's just a joke from one of

y expression blank. I didn't need to ex

e. "I took the day off for you! I'll make y

ttempt at pancakes. He set a plate in front of m

ell. "Yes, of course. An urgent co

mask of fake regret. "Ava,

d rushed out the door,

te. I recalled the years of sacrifice, the endless sup

ate. I walked to the kitchen and scrap

age. Just l