When Love Breaks by Jack

The arrow hit the bullseye, though it wasn’t exactly planned that way.

By the time the meeting wrapped up at the office, dusk was already creeping in. I had hitched a ride with Christine earlier in the day.

I was just about to call an Uber back to the hospital.

Christine offered to drop me off, and I shot her a sidelong glance, teasing, “I saw you texting Dailey during the meeting. Don’t let me hold you back from… whatever’s brewing there.”

Christine’s laughter was bright and beautiful. “Oh, what now? You’ve become a screen peeker?”

“Just happened to catch a glimpse.”

I chuckled awkwardly, feeling a bit embarrassed.

During the meeting, she was seated diagonally to my left, leaning over the table to text. It was impossible not to see.

Just then, my phone rang. It was Gregory.

“All done with the meeting?”

His voice, relaxed and casual, flowed from the other end of the line, making me smile.

“Yeah, just finished. I’m heading back to the hospital to check on Ramona, then home.”

Ramona’s condition seemed stable, identical to anyone her age. If I kept up my constant vigil at the hospital, she’d start suspecting she had some incurable disease. She had already asked me a few times if that was

down. I’m waiting

“You’re here?”

Webster from work is

“I’ll be right there.”

Turning to Christine, I saw her gesturing hurriedly, “Go on, go on. Look

our faces every day,

“You…”

touched my nose, “You go get him, girl. Lock down

from my office and

the building, the parking garage still held the warmth of late summer

he was, lazily leaning against his

hands, bones well-defined, were fiddling with his phone, his casually drooping eyelids giving off a

carefree

out an arm without even looking

instead, “You didn’t even look. Weren’t you

“Not afraid.”

smirked, his hand caressing the small of my

countered, “Isn’t

looking deep into my eyes,

warmed, and I wriggled free to