, so he could chase his. I worked two jobs to support us through his medical school, another during his residency. I believed in the future we we

fellowship, a rising star at the c

her, the silence pressing down on me. I traced the lines of a new building desig

him, the comfortable silence filled with shared ambition. He would kiss my temple and whisper, "Just a l

s felt like a

his doctor's coat. He looked tired, but there was a different kind

asked, keeping

ifesaver, though. She's a new intern, incredibly sharp. Reorganized the entir

ned her every day fo

im. As I got closer, I smelled it. A sweet, floral pe

"Who's perf

at are you talking about? It's probably

my eyes. He was

trong,

ped, his voice suddenly cold. "I'm ex

allway, the foreign scent hanging in the air, a thick, suffoc

dream house, the one we were supposed to build after he finished his fellowship. I looked at the sweeping lines, the open

lines. Then, with a surge of cold, clear pain, I slowly crumpled the thick paper in my fists, the sound of it

ding there, a bright, triumphant smile on his face. And next to him w

ff

ught home for dinner!" Etha

nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Hayes

her skin, was my locket. The antique gold, the custom design I'd drawn, the s

orld tilted, the colors of t

h my locket?" My voice

r of annoyance in his eyes. "Ava, don't make a scene. Tiffany

disbelief making my voice shake. "You

ket protectively. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't know it was

rting arm around her shoulders. He glared at me.

e low and dangerous. I took a ste

're being hysteric

Tiffany, my hand closing ar

chain snapped. The locket fell from my

Ethan shouted, his fa

ase behind me. There was a moment of weightlessness, a flash of h

ng, white-hot pain shooting through my abdomen and back.

ing beneath me. I looked down. Bl

ing for seven weeks, a tiny spark of hope I

's cold, detached voice floating down the stairs. "Don't worry, Tiffany. It was a