Alex . . “Mr. Watson, I am quite busy. My desk is cluttered with a lot of paperwork I have to attend to.” I glanced around my empty desk. “If it’s that important, I would appreciate it if you came to my office.” Ending the call, I returned the telephone to the landline base. I opened the drawer of my desk, took out some papers, and carpeted my desk. I still couldn’t understand the sick pleasure Mr. Watson derived from bringing me to his office, but I was done feeding it. Probably about control; it’s like having your enemy in your terrain. My eyes were fixed on the door as I anticipated his arrival. Though meeting him didn’t give me exactly what I wanted, it did provide answers—answers that only stirred up more questions. But answers are answers, right? A knock on the door made me jerk in my seat. “Come in.” I picked up my pen and darted my gaze to the paper before me, as though I were going through them. Mr. Watson's presence filled the room, his ever-cunning smile plas
Sophie . . The fresh air chased out the musky scent of neglect and abandonment as I opened the windows of my studio. The sun filtered through, casting its harsh yellow hue. I removed the dust and cobwebs that made a home out of my studio just the way Boredom had made a home in my bone marrows. I haven't had time to come here because of work. But it was the weekend; Luca had traveled and would be back probably tonight or tomorrow. Romi was occupied too. So I came here to work on some personal project; it had been long since I did that. “So what would I make today?” My eyes flicked around the room. They rested on Alex’s Concorde hand-model plane, and I remembered all that happened that day. The promise he made. A twinge shot through my chest—he never came back for the airplane. Remembering how Benjamin and Alex were hiding something about his health and Adeline losing her husband to a sickness, I ran my fingers across the sleek body of the gray airplane. The coldness seepe
Alex . . “Open this door, You slut.” The heavy thuds that accompanied the bang on the door attacked my ears. But I didn’t stop, more like I couldn’t stop. Not with her soft lips in mine as I tasted the sweet bliss on them, not with the warmth she was stirring in me. Mia could bring down the house for all I care; she could even set it ablaze, as long as Sophie was here in my arms—I’m ready to burn. “Open this door now, Alex.” The bangs came in harder, and the fringes of the door cried out. Sophie pushed me away and pulled back, her chest heaving as her breath came out ragged and uneven. Her eyes flickered between me and the door. I glared at the door, and an irritating heat warmed up, almost devouring the sweet warmth in my bloodstream. Sophie ran her hands through her hair. A frown etched itself on her face as she drew her breath and let it go. “This was a big mistake.” She sprang to her feet and retrieved her bag from the opposite sofa. “I shouldn’t have come.” He
Sophie . . My stomach churned without mercy as my eyes locked with his—maybe nausea, maybe nervousness. His eyes softened, more like weakened. Clenching his fist, he squeezed his thumb. Although my heart pounded, it felt as though it might fail me any moment from now, with the way my chest burned. Alex exhaled and brushed his face with his palms. “I don’t even know how to put this.” “Put it in any way,” I responded. His eyes met mine again. “Remember I told you I was drugged.” I nodded as my hands sought solace from each other, clasping above my thighs. “It's an illegal drug; a banned drug, and I’m suffering from the side effects.” He leaned back on the chair, still squeezing his thumb. Side effects. My mind wandered to his panic attack. I bounced my foot; maybe I could generate a warmth that could melt the chill that had coursed down my spine. “What are the side effects?” There probably would be more. "I can’t remember all the side effects that Benjamin told me.” He rub
Alex . . The unintrusive white light bounced off the white walls. My eyes fixed on the digital clock, and my fingers drummed on the black visitor’s chair in the doctor’s office. The sterile scent hugged the air, yet it couldn’t hug me. No matter how hard I searched, I couldn’t find calmness. Guess anxiety and calmness can’t coexist. My phone beeped. Reaching out for it, there was a message from Sophie: “Tell me you are already at the hospital.” My lips broke into a smile, and calm warmth hugged my chest. It’s been a week since we gazed at the stars, and I could tell she wasn’t as distant as she was. If I knew watching the stars with her could have this effect, I would have done that years ago. The shutter of my phone’s camera disrupted the silence for a moment as I took a picture of the hospital and sent it to her. “I didn’t ask for a picture; a yes or no would have sufficed.” Another message came in. Despite the cold reply, another ripple of warmth still shot th
SOPHIE..Romi and I strolled down the aisle, our eyes fixed on the colorful array of products exhibited on the white shelves partitioning the supermarket. Our ears fixed on our conversation, filtering out the low chatter from other customers.Romi’s voice bubbled with excitement. “You and Alex almost had sex?” She dropped the red box of chocolate back on the shelves and picked another—a blue one—before she tossed it into the shopping cart. I blinked at her, resisting the urge to press her neck until she took my predicament seriously. She never took anything seriously. “I still don’t see the problem with that.” We proceeded down the aisle, and she took some packs of biscuits and placed them in the cart. “Besides, he is the father of the child in your stomach.”I exhaled the air that tightened my lungs. “But something happened.” My voice softened, and my eyes fell to the dull gray tiles that floored the supermarket.“Oh my gosh. You had sex with him.” Turning 180 degrees, her voice
Sophie..I don’t think my heart had ever pounded like this in my entire twenty-five years of living. It was as though a never-ending pit had been dug in my stomach. “Sophie.”My name echoed before I snapped out of my reverie. I faced Lucy sitting on the other end of our office desk. “Sorry. Yeah. Any problem?” A yawning escaped me.“So I was thinking of changing the design here.” She turned the laptop over to face me. “Like we should add some cultural elements to it.”I leaned in and drew the laptop closer to me. My weary eyes scrutinized the work. I stifled the burning liquid that threatened to crawl up my stomach. “Are you alright?” “Yeah.” I managed a nod.Alex’s voice filled the hallway, and my breath quickened as I tried to take in a lot of air to support my lungs. Lucy’s eyes were glued to me, and I tried to regain my composure. I was still trying to calm the rumors in the office. What if I tell Alex and he behaves like typical Alex, showering me with protectiveness? What
Sophie..“I’m done with the meeting. Let’s see.” My grip around my phone tightened, and if I had more strength, I could have snapped the phone in half. A painful smile crawled up my lips as I mocked how stupid I was. Well, I should end this once and for all. “Let’s meet at your office.” I texted back.If only my steps were as fast as the way thoughts ravaged my mind, maybe the walk to his office wouldn't have seemed any longer than usual. Time seemed to move slower and the air, thicker. I pushed the door open, and Alex’s soft blue eyes pierced through me. With the anger killing every emotion in my veins, flutters still dared to breathe life into me.“Sophie, are you alright? Alex asked with that voice that planted beautiful flutters, with the tone that made me cling to his foolish, blissful words.Crease lines formed on my eyelids as I tightened them, attempting to kill them—every flutter, every weakness. That’s the only way I could end this. But when I opened my eyes, they fell