He Loved Her Too Late

hat Followed

learned how to outrunthe silence he left be

into the eleva

iet hum of

d then stopped, as if sensing the d

ollowed him b

well, Rowan arrived at work with the uneasy feelin

his bag by his desk, loosened his tie, and sat down without turning on his compu

't call

't text

waited, the harder

m in a way that felt deliberate. She greeted Mira when she arrived. She

ticed ev

him most wasn

her ste

Mira leaned tow

calm," she

look up. "I'm

icing

lence that isn'

That sounds like a lesso

paused over her

rby and stiffened, but when he loo

worse th

ing in the break room, staring at t

ix that," a voice sai

ira watching him w

said. "S

s," Mira added. "Especially

ded. "I'v

her head.

n't accusing

didn't

, Elira stepped into

e, she d

d loosely in front of her, breathing in

lf that until

eaked open

idn't

might be here

briefly, then faced

wed. "I d

said gently. "

echo wrapping around them like

thinking,"

rous," she re

miled. "I d

wa

" he continued. "But I

dded. "Y

something I'

y keep d

wasn't sharp.

. "Because silence feels safer

nce is the wrong

eyes searching. "Then I

ou don't fix silence,

h wh

she said. "Even

What if honesty

tened. "What if si

anded

an walked home in

voices overlapping but he felt oddly detached from it all. E

t t

ilence al

the door longer than necessary before goi

ment, ho

asn'

then locked the phone wit

at by her window, the li

waiting for

herself

, untouched. She picked it up once, t

o speak, he knew

f he

hought away, not r

ng, Rowan arri

id E

each other at

ng," h

g," she

ing

n them wasn't host

s car

n stopped b

lk?" he as

really looked at him, as

d. "But not in

ked. "W

en we don't want to be seen ch

at slowly. "Ok

cking up her

hing, the late afternoon sun cast

ped near t

o keep repeatin

't," Elir

to be the reas

yes. "Then do

"I'm afraid that if I speak, I

things aren't mean

, the city breat

low. "If I say something no

away. "They're a

eath, steady

on't

hone

ai

hrough the mome

inctively. Elira saw it, felt so

teppe

," she sai

her, torn. "I

"But don't stand here pre

ne buzz

ound it, indecision wr

tep back, distance g

she said softly. "The

ed his mou

stop

down at

at

a thought he might fin

buzzed a t

turned

n't call

't reach

away, the quiet follo

, she didn't

omething e

so

she knew one thing

someone who only found his voi