I placed my briefcase on the desk and turned on my computer,preparing to begin my transition work. For the first time in years, I didn’t stop by the break room to brew coffee for Fredric.
Normally, I’d hand–deliver him a perfectly customized Americano first thing in the morning.B
But today,l sipped my own bitter black coffee alone at my desk,reviewing contracts in silence.
When Fredric stepped out of his office his eyes instinctively scanned my desk and froze.
Only one cup of coffee. Mine.
He paused Just for a second. But said nothing and continued walking past.
The entire office felt unusually still.
In the past I’d be chattering away like a sparrow breaking up the dull workday with a cheerful voice that filled the silence. But today.I didn’t even look up.
Fredric lingered by my desk.
“Is there anything giving you trouble at work?“His voice was low,unreadable.”
“No.“I didn’t look up.
He stared at me a moment longer. There was something sharp,almost probing,in his gaze. I thought maybe just maybe, he’d bring up the contract he signed without reading.
But then a loud gasp rang out from the hallway.
Fredric jerked his head toward the sound,eyes narrowing in alarm.
I followed his gaze toward the glass window and felt my stomach drop.
Deana stood at the stairwell,hugging a large,unstable box of documents.One of her heels was caught in the step. Her body tilted dangerously over the edge.8
There were at least ten steps behind her and a cold cement floor below.
Her arms trembled and the box wobbled. She could fall any second,
“Deana!“His voice cracked,raw and frantic more emotion than I’d ever heard from him.
He shoved my chair out of the way and took off like a bullet.
“Fredric!“I called after him.“Don’t run like that,it’s dangerous!”
I reached out to grab his arm,terrified that he’d slip.I didn’t care about Deana,all I cared about was him.
I even shouted for security to help,but he didn’t even look at me
Instead he yanked his arm away from mine. The back of my hand burned red where he’d slapped it aside.
He sprinted up the stairs faster than the guards could react.
I watched as he reached out,grabbing Deana just in time to pull her into his arms.
But the momentum knocked them both backward.
The box tumbled and they fell together.
Boom!
The crash echoed through the hall.
I rushed forward,frozen as I reached the top of the stairwell.
Fredric was sprawled on the ground,shielding Deana with his own body His shoulder had slammed hard into the iron railing.I heard him grunt in pain!!
But his eyes,when he looked at her, were unbelievably soft.Like the ice had finally thawed.
My hands were trembling.
The fall wasn’t deadly,but it could’ve been. If his head had hit the floor instead of his shoulder,he might have died on the spot.
And yet…he didn’t hesitate. Not for a second.”
I looked down at my reddened hand, the one he flung away moments earlier and let out a broken laugh.
There was no warmth in it.Only something bitter and freezing.
I turned and walked back to my desk.
My fingers trembled as I pulled the wedding ring off my finger.
This ring,the one his mother had personally chosen for us,was the one I used to sneak kisses at when he wasn’t looking.pretending it was a symbol of love.
1:15 PM
“Enough,”I whispered to myself.
I stood up,walked to the break room and dropped the ring into the trash.”
It made a faint clink as it hit the bottom.”
Like the sound of something breaking.
Final and irrevocable.
