090: What It Feels Like PT 2

{~Cherry Reed~} The kiss stretched longer than I expected, long enough for time to blur at the edges, long enough for my thoughts to slip somewhere quiet and distant. It wasn’t rushed anymore, not like the first second he’d pinned me to the bed. It slowed, deepened, settled into something that felt… more romantic. To me, he'll always feel like more. Because my feelings are involved and I wish his were too. By the time Nathaniel finally pulled away, my lips felt warm and tingling, my chest rising and falling a little too fast. He lingered there for a second, close enough that I could still feel his breath against my skin, before he straightened and stepped back. The sudden space felt… wrong. I stayed where I was, staring up at the ceiling, my mind blank in that hazy, floating way that made it hard to hold onto anything solid. Whatever little frustration I’d been clinging to earlier had dissolved somewhere between the pool and this moment. I couldn’t even fully remember why I’d

091: Sending Mixed Signals

{~Nathaniel Cross~}I left Cherry’s room about an hour after I’d walked in. Longer than I should’ve stayed. Shorter than I wanted.She’d been smiling when I left—actually smiling, not forcing it—and that should’ve been enough to settle whatever was twisting in my chest. Knowing she wasn’t upset anymore, knowing I’d fixed at least part of what I’d broken… that should’ve been enough.But it wasn’t.Because underneath that relief, something else lingered.Guilt.And something far less noble.I exhaled as I walked down the hallway, dragging a hand over my face, my mind replaying the last hour whether I wanted it to or not. The way she’d looked at me. The way she’d leaned into me like she’d forgotten she was supposed to stay upset.The way she’d asked me to stay.I knew what she wanted.Hell, I wanted it too.There was no point pretending otherwise.To put it plainly, I missed her. Missed the way she felt, the way she reacted, the way she lost control just enough to make me forget mine. Th

092: Trouble In Marital Paradise PT 1

{~Cherry Reed~} I turned my phone back on the same day Nathaniel and I kissed. I know. I’m disappointed in myself too. Three whole days of ignoring him, of actually sticking to something for once, and I folded the second things felt soft between us again. It was stupid. Predictable. Very me. But I couldn’t help it. The urge sat under my skin, restless and persistent. If I couldn’t have him physically, then I wanted something. A message. A check-in. Proof that whatever this was didn’t just disappear the second he walked out of my room. I was desperate, okay? Fucking sue me for being myself! So I reached for my phone and turned it on. I immediately regretted it. Notifications flooded in like they’d been waiting for permission. Messages stacked on top of messages, names I hadn’t thought about in days suddenly demanding attention. Bella had texted a few times— nothing urgent, just her usual check-ins. Hannah, on the other hand… I frowned as I opened her messages. She clai

093: Trouble In Marital Paradise PT 2

{~Cherry Reed~} I didn’t think it was that serious at first. No offence to my own mother, but… I genuinely didn’t believe she had it in her to pull off anything that calculated. Petty? Yes. Manipulative? Occasionally to her own daughters. But something layered, something intentional enough to cause real damage? It just didn’t fit the version of her I had in my head. Apparently, I’d underestimated her. Because whatever this was, it wasn’t small. And it definitely wasn’t out of character the way I wanted it to be. It turned out she wanted me to work with those people far more than I realized. Enough to scheme. Enough to play along. Enough to retaliate when things didn’t go her way. The car ride back home the next day made that painfully clear. It started off quiet. The kind of silence that sits heavy in your chest, pressing down until even breathing feels awkward. The road stretched endlessly ahead of us, the hum of the engine filling in the gaps where conversation should’ve

094: Trouble In Marital Paradise PT 3

{~Nathaniel Cross~} Every time I think I’ve reached my limit, every time I’m convinced this is the angriest I’ve ever been, something else happens that makes the last thing feel small. Like I didn’t even know what anger was before. This time…It’s different. I’m too angry to show it. Like if I let even a fraction of it slip, it wouldn’t stop. And I can trace it back to a very specific moment. Sitting in that hotel bathroom. Staring at my reflection like I didn’t recognize the man looking back at me. Trying, actually trying, to convince myself that I was still in control of my own decisions. That I was still the kind of man who could walk out of that room, see his wife, and not hesitate to accept a kiss from her.. Because that’s what I’m supposed to be. A married man. A man who doesn’t stand there thinking that if she does kiss him, it’ll erase the taste of someone else from his mouth. His new addiction. I told myself to get over it. To step out of that bathroom and act norm

095: What Breaks A Home

{~Cherry Reed~} Nathaniel didn’t come home that night. Or the next. Or the one after that. At first, it didn’t feel real. It felt like one of those situations where he just needed space. Where he’d cool off, maybe stay somewhere else for a day or two, then walk back in like nothing had happened. But a day turned into three. Three turned into a week. And then two full weeks passed. No calls, no texts. Zero communication from his side. It wasn’t just me either. He didn’t reach out to any of us. It was like he’d vanished. Life didn’t stop, though. It never does. Sheryl filled the silence by throwing herself completely into her art show. She dragged me along with her, not really giving me a choice, talking nonstop about concepts, pieces, staging, lighting. She needed me. Not just as her sister but as part of the work itself. Her muse. Her performer. So I showed up. I practiced for her, ran through movements until my body ached, let her adjust and correct and reshape everyth