I kissed his cheek softly and answered.Ten minutes later, I was already lacing up my sneakers.“She’s burning up. Like, fever-level scary. She said none of the interns wanted to come. Everyone’s avoiding her now, thanks to her foolishness.”“You’re going?”“Yeah. I can’t ignore that. Not even after everything. I’ll check on her and bring meds and food. I promise, it won’t be long.”“Be safe. Text me if you need anything and don’t forget to let me know when you are done,” he said, handing me his umbrella.***I moved through the aisles like a soldier on a mission in the grocery store. I snagged soup cans, fresh fruit, Gatorade, and crackers from the racks before moving to the pharmacy, where I got fever meds, herbal tea, and a thermometer. I added a soft, reusable ice pack on impulse in case she needed it.I knew what it felt like to be sick and alone. I wouldn’t let Zara feel that even if she wasn’t my friend at the moment.By 11:05pm, I was in her apartment. She had texted me the pa
|Cassie|The day’s work was long and tiring, thanks to the absence of the two offenders. The company had been quite silent and laced with tension because of the suspension. Everyone was being careful of what to do or say since no one wanted to be caught in the management’s net.By the time I logged out and shut down the system, it was around seven in the evening. I was exhausted.I kicked off my heels with a sigh and dropped my tote bag beside Nicholas’s office couch. The day had dragged on longer than expected—back-to-back meetings, crisis calls, and a mountain of follow-ups from the suspension fallout. My limbs felt like wet sand, and my head buzzed from reading too many lines of press copy and policy memos.I figured Nicholas would be back soon, so I curled up on the couch for a few minutes to wait for him. Just a short rest before he comes back and we leave for the day.I didn’t realize when my eyes drifted shut. I was long gone before I knew it.The soft rustle of paper and the g
The fever started as an ache behind my eyes, a subtle chill under my skin. I thought I could out-stubborn it. I’d done that my whole life; it was not the first time I ignored what hurt until it stopped trying.But this time, it didn’t stop. Every passing second was a moment of torture.I curled under the blanket, drenched in sweat and still shaking. My phone buzzed again on the nightstand. It was from the once blocked number that I forgot to block after he successfully ruined my entire well-being.I didn’t answer and just rolled to the side, facing the wall.He was watching me. Somehow, even after all these years, my father had found a way to crawl back into my life—like a disease that mutates just when you think you’ve cured it.*****I was eight the first time I realized my father hated me. This was not just disappointment or a temporary exhaustion. It was real, sharp, and gut-level hatred.He’d been drinking, of course. He always did it after work. He came home angry, blaming the t
|Zara|The moment the email hit my inbox, I felt my stomach twist. It was definitely not from surprise, but from the cold finality of it.Subject: Formal Notice of SuspensionDuration: 3 Weeks (Zara Leigh)And a second later, Ryan let out a bitter snort from his side of the long glass conference table.“Well, shit. They didn’t even wait till we got back to our desks. That was so quick.”I stood immediately, my chair screeching against the polished floor.“They said it in the briefing, Ryan. You were getting six weeks. Me, too. It’s not a glitch.”He leaned back in his seat like it was all a joke. “Yeah, well, I didn’t expect them to be that damn prompt. This building’s only efficient when someone’s getting screwed.”“You mean like you trying to screw Cassie over and dragging me into it?” I snapped, grabbing my phone and bag.“Oh, come on, Zara. Don’t act innocent. You were pissed at her too. It’s not like you are a saint in all of this.”“Pissed doesn’t mean sabotage, Ryan.” I rounded
I turned off my phone totally during the weekend. The Governor had gave the command that I shouldn’t be called no matter what happens since I had done my best to curb the sudden rage that was thrown against his administration.Stepping into a normal office that Monday morning was so therapeutic. I had missed such normalcy and calmness. The staff were going at their pace and the smiles that felt like they went on extinction two weeks ago were back. “You’re brutal,” Nicholas said that morning, stepping into my office unexpectedly with two coffees.“No,” I said, sipping mine. “I’m just allergic to cowards. They really pissed the fuck out of me.”He smirked. “Your phone’s been ringing all morning.”I knew, I just didn’t want to pick it up.David Lin had called three times and I watched it ring. I waited until the fourth to answer.“Victoria,” he said, breathless like he’d run to his desk. “I was hoping we could talk.”“That’s new. You used to prefer monologues.”“Look, I want to do a fo
The following week, the headlines flipped strongly in our favor. Yet, I didn’t smile because there was other things yet to be done.I read the front page three times. I took note of every name mentioned, every word carefully chosen to protect the outlet while still doing what it was always meant to do—plant doubt. And then I circled one name in red: David Lin.“You ready to finish what you started?” the Governor asked me as he passed my desk.His expression was way better than the last week. I could also see that he was back to his normal and goofy self.“I don’t finish things,” I said, rising to follow him. “I erase them completely till they don’t leave a trace.”His scoff almost cut my last sentence off as his fingers grazed the edge of my table. “This is the reason why I will forever cling onto you. I love how merciless you are without losing your way. That’s why you inspire me.” I couldn’t shake the last line off my head. It was a compliment that money could never buy. My shoulde