dishes from Noel in the kitchen, no thud of Mason's sneakers pounding down the stairs, no soft hum of Maire s

l used to sleep. The sheets were smoothed neatly now, as though she had never been there at al

ast he could bury himself in work. That had always been his refuge: blueprints and deadlines, clients and projects. Ar

*

desks, voices overlapped in the open-plan space, and phones rang. Normally, the rhythm

ightly as he stepped into the floor that housed his offi

e flicker of surprise on her face. He was usually warmer, taking

s piercing the sky. He set his briefcase down and opened the latest designs for a hi

lines blurred. He rubbed his temples, tried again, but the numbers swam, the proportions skewed. Mason's face intruded

voices low, stopped abruptly when he walked in. Their guilty silence told him enough, they were talking about him. Later, in the hallway, he overheard another pa

was becoming their liability. That afternoon, he sat in a meeting with a major client, the corporate headquarters project lead. Nick tried to present the updated design

gures don't align with the original propo

ed, the calculations were off. Normally, he would ha

ediately", Nick sai

leaned back

been very eager for our business, don'

with grand gestures and extravagant promises. Their rivalry had grown alongside their firms, each vying for the city's biggest projects. Nick had always prided himself on winning by merit, by design excel

stomach twist. He didn't wave, didn't acknowledge him beyond that smile, but the message was clear. Marcus knew. He had heard about Nick slipping this past week from one of his many spies, and he wanted Nick to kn

s silent. He dropped his keys into the bowl by the door. The echo seemed louder than usual. He tried to fill the silence. He turned on the television, let the news drone in the back

made now, the room too tidy, stripped of life. Maire's dolls sat in a row on the

ds: "I can forgive many things, bu

what his heart should have known. But how could he say that without

*

ided his gaze, whispering more openly now. He tried to correct course, tried to drown himself in

esk. They asked for an updated proposal on the Greenway

blood r

", he answe

ces Nick had left vulnerable. Nick dismissed Laura with a curt nod, then sank back in his chair

longer hidden beneath a polished surface. They were spreading, wide and visible, threat

n the dark living room, the city lights flickering beyond the windows. The emptiness pressed i