(Thomas)I’ve been trying to figure out how to bring the shares back up. But … Mother was right. Public perception was affecting our stock prices. And as stocks went down, so did sales. I called a meeting with the directors. We spent the whole day in the conference room, going over every conceivable plan that could improve this situation.I wanted to get this done before I went into my office and reviewed all of the paperwork. A part of me did not know whether this was a good decision or not. I was trying to put on a brave face but, inside, I felt incredibly swayed.It was taxing for me to keep myself together right now.I would not even have come to work if the situation had not already gone so far out of hand.But I was not going to go down without a fight. I decided to revitalize our marketing efforts: we had gotten a bad reputation. And good marketing would fix that. But, at the same time, I understood that whatever money and effort I put into marketing right now I could potential
(Adam)The jukebox blasted a trending hip hop song that reverberated through the walls. The bass reached all the way to the door. I pushed it and went inside. This was nice.The bar was loud and crowded. It took me a second to find them. I glanced around the tables left and right until I saw Monica waving her hand at me over the table.My old friends from medical school, Monica, Jacob, Matthew, and Vanessa were here. Matthew had proposed to Vanessa a week ago and they were planning to leave for Los Angeles in the morning, where Matthew had gotten a new job. The group had gathered here today to bid them farewell.I had reconnected with Vanessa by chance at the hospital during Mabel’s visits and she had invited me over here for drinks today.“Hey!” said Matthew, “Get in here, mate!”. He got up, hugged me, and thumped me on the back. I laughed and I shook his hand.“It’s been so long since we last saw you!” said Vanessa.I chuckled. “Well, I’m here now!” I shrugged.I dragged a chair up
(Thomas)Two days had already gone by and I had only met with four potential investors and secured a deal with one of them. While the alliance had boosted our shares up by five percent over the past two days, I still had twenty percent to cover. And only two days left.I was swamped with meetings and work. In fact, I had spent the last three days at the office. I was very disheveled and disorganized with papers splashed across my large wooden desk as I finished my pack of cigarettes for the day when Jack walked in.“You have got to leave this office, man!” he said, looking around. He was right. The whole place looked like a mess.But how could I leave this office until I had figured out how to solve my problem! This was my only shot at fixing things.I shook my head at Jack. He sat down. “I know you're upset,” he said, “But it’s going to be alright. I’m here and ready to offer whatever help that you might need, okay?”“Thanks, man,” I said. I handed him some files, “Please go over the
(Lydia)I did not know what to do. Everywhere I looked, there was news of Thomas and Sarah’s upcoming wedding. And, if I was being completely honest, it devastated me. I had told Thomas that I would not be with him for as long as he was still engaged to Sarah. I had bridled my hopes, but could not deny their presence.I had still wished that he would come back to me. And I hated myself for it.I sighed and put my phone down after watching yet another video of Sarah’s interview to a news reporter. She was beaming. She was so incredibly happy.“Hey,” said Ruby, stepping in through the door. She shut it gently behind her.“How are you doing?” she asked me.“I’m okay,” I said, holding back my tears. But Ruby could see through it all. She sat down beside me, took my hand into hers, and squeezed.“I’m here for you,” she said.And that was all that it took for me to break down.“I just—I just thought that he would choose me, Ruby,” I sobbed, looking at her through my streaming eyes, “I reall
(Lydia)It appeared as though I was losing everything --- the man that I loved as well as my career.I slumped into Ruby’s arms after I told her. But she was surprisingly calm about this whole thing. Evidently, so was Mama.“Hey,” said Ruby, hugging me tight, “You can’t win at everything, Lydia. Sometimes, things just don’t go as you plan.”“You need to extend some grace towards yourself, my child,” said Mama, “You’ve been through a very difficult time. It was normal for you to feel low and exhausted after having dealt with such difficult circumstances and emotions. Be kind to yourself. You’re doing better than you think you are!”I wept and whimpered. Perhaps, I was letting out all the pain that I was feeling at the news of Thomas’s wedding. It was in three days. And, maybe, if that had not been the case, losing this play wouldn’t have meant so much to me.But I had wanted to focus on my life and my accomplishments now. And, just as I had started to pick myself back up, this bomb had
(Lydia)I sat down in my seat and took a deep breath. In a few minutes, the curtains would be pulled back. And then, I would watch as what I had created sprang into life.And I would watch my children – my very own Mabel and Miles – participate in it!This was it.I wanted to record the whole event. I bent down, unclasped the purse at my feet, and fished out my phone. On the other side of the auditorium, I caught sight of Ruby holding up a camera.“Ah, well,” I thought, “That’s taken care of!”I felt someone sitting next to me. They must have come in while I was looking the other way.When I turned my head, I froze. It was Thomas!But Thomas was looking straight ahead. I doubted that he had seen me. I looked closer. Despite his outwardly crisp appearance, Thomas was disheveled somehow -- perturbed. He was lost deep in thought and looked as though he hadn’t slept in days.He felt my gaze and turned towards me. I blushed. I had not meant to be rude.“I’m sorry,” I murmured hastily, turn
(Adam)I drove over to Lydia’s house, the backseat of my car filled with toys and presents for the children. Mabel was doing a lot better now, but I wanted her to know that she was loved and cared for. So, I had been trying to give her extra attention. I did not want for her to grow up and recall this incident and to feel horrible about it then. No, that would be awful.And I knew that Lydia would be feeling low about Thomas’s upcoming wedding but I also knew that she was a very strong person. Lydia had always been able to hold herself together. She had always managed to pull herself out of whatever situation that she landed in. She was an exceptionally strong woman. In fact, it was this very strength, bravery, and vitality that had always drawn me in towards her. I was certain that, over time, I could convince her to see me for who I was rather than hold feelings for Thomas in her heart. And when I did, she would be happy again.So, I was not especially worried about her.But when sh
(Jack)The boys, Thomas, and I were gathered around in a private club. Today was Thomas’s bachelor party.I had met with ten potential investors and closed a deal with three of them. Thomas had closed one with another. Overall, our shares had gone up twenty percent over the last six days. But Thomas was still devastated.“The scandal will bring all of these down,” he had said to me, “Sarah has announced the engagement to all of Colorado, possibly more. We’ll lose a lot of money if I refuse to marry her.”He was sitting in a corner right now, getting started on his second bottle of whisky for the night.I had never seen a man look so glum in my life. I had been upset about what had happened with Ruby. She had denied any involvement with me. Since then, we had only had a few brief awkward interactions with each other at the hospital. But we had not had a proper conversation. And even if we had had one, I would not have known what to say. What was there left to speak of?I had thought th