Her Crown, His Broken Heart

the hug, her face cloud

estion is that,

her blazer onto a chair. It was a classic deflection, a m

g her temples. "It's been an insane

nvenience on her packed schedule. The casual way she brushed

, my voice firmer than I expected.

er eyes before she masked it

w much I appreciate you? Honestly,

enthouse elevator echoed through the apart

n Th

ng succulent in a ceramic pot. He had that perfectly

ted to drop this off for good luck tomor

enuine, unguarded smile, the ki

aid, her voice warm as she took th

n front of me, she hugged him. It wasn't a friendly hug,

od there,

plit second, I saw it in her eyes. Pure annoyance. Disgust,

turning flat. "Ethan, this is Alex Mil

The words were a

s smile. "Nice to meet you, man. B

back at Sarah. The way she looked at him was a c

h walked him to the elevator, their hands brushing. The moment t

oblem? You were

n't he?" I asked, the question leav

he just glared at me.

hoed in the silent apartment. I stood there for a long time, the silence pressing

But I had built the security system for this entire building.

The screen lit up. The background wasn't a photo of us, it was a smiling pict

icke

and Ethan cooking in our kitchen, laughing. Sarah and Ethan at a black-tie gala, his

ng with a ghost, a memory of a relationship, whi

chair. The noise was loud in the quiet room. I didn't care. Nothing mattered anymore. The carefully constructed world I had l