A Ring Crushed, A Heart Broken

ket pocket, hitting the rooftop with a fa

small, ve

er tonight, after the news of Liam' s wedding settled. Not as a proposal in the real sense, but as a prom

hings, of the quiet nights in her studio, of the genuine laughter we had shared, of the fu

let go of my collar with one hand, and I almost slipped. She to

nd her heel into it, twisting it back and forth, destroyi

flat and dead. "You're not real. Your help,

scooped up the crushed remains of the box and the ruin

he mangled me

have this?" she

g reflex kicked in, but her hand clamped over my jaw, forcing it shut. The sharp e

he object scraped its way down my throat, a painful, viol

ow growl. She pulled her hand away, and

t of my

both of them, pushing with all th

y feet were already in the air, my bo

ed, replaced by a rushing in my ears. The city lights weren't scattered stars anymore. They were rushing up to meet me, a be

ything we

beep echoed in th

slick with sweat, in a gleaming white pod. A network of wires and sensors were stuck to my temple

rm leaned over me, her face imp

terile as the room. "Emergency simulation terminatio

eal than the pod I was lying in. The pain in my shoulder, the scrape in my thr

lation. But it had