Novel & Cerita I Paused My Game.to Be Here

I continued, "That day, I stood outside the funeral home and waited for you until it got dark. Gabriel came once, but after answering a call from Tiffany, he left. He said that the dead were already dead, and the living mattered more." Something crashed to the floor on the other end of the line. I smiled faintly. "You see? I remembered everything all along. I just wanted a family so badly that I pretended to forget." Hunter's voice was frighteningly hoarse. "Natalie… I'm sorry." I looked at my mother's photograph on the headstone. "Stop apologizing. Your apologies came too late." I ended the call, took out the SIM card, and snapped it in half. Then, I folded the veil neatly and placed it in

Engine running. Waiting. END SCENE

Even my thoughts were tired. Vanessa stretched again. “Anyway, I’m calling it now, tomorrow’s game is either going to make legends or therapy bills.” “You’re very optimistic,” I said flatly. “I prefer realistic trauma forecasting.” That made Paige huff a small laugh despite herself. The lights went off not long after that. The room shifted into that late-night silence where even breathing feels louder than it should. I pulled the blanket over me, staring at the ceiling again. Then my phone buzzed. Once.

I was losing on every side. “Dude, are you just going to stand there moping, or are you going to join me and watch the game?” Justin nudged the spot next to him with his head. On a normal day, I would’ve joined him. If I couldn’t play, I could at least watch others do it—get a little satisfaction from that. But not today. Not when everything about the game reminded me how much life was screwing me over. “I’ll pass. You’re busy. I’ll check back in later,” I said, already turning to leave.

I got into my bedroom singing and swaying my hips to a song by Sia, “I'm unstoppable!" I kept my laptop on the bed with my phone and I continued, clashing my palms together, “I'm a Porsche with no brakes. I'm invincible” “Yeah, I win every single game. I'm so powerful…….” I stopped when it struck my brain. I was given thirty minutes to be at the allocated venue and my heart flattered. I quickly picked up my phone and stared at the screen, “What the…” I cursed with my eyes widened when I saw that five minutes were already gone out of the thirty minutes and the clock was still ticking.

"I would completely understand if you don't want me here or if I'm interrupting something, I could leave... I just..." "You are not interrupting anything" Chloe said, cutting him off. "And believe it or not, I'm glad you decided to pay me a visit. I could actually use the company. I was going to make dinner when you arrived so I will just get back to that. You can sit here in the living room and I will just hurry things up in the kitchen."

"I'm right here." ---

“Please… I’ll talk… just stop…” I pause, hammer raised. “Who sent you?”

I pushed open the door of my apartment and I headed in. Dempsey was still on the couch, the game console still in his hand. “How did it go?” He didn’t take his eyes off the game. I slipped my shoes off and slid into my flip-flops. “Well, I hope he responds to my text from now on,” I said, heading into the kitchen and taking out a bottle of water. I stood before him. “You might’ve to pause your game for what I’m about to tell you.” Dempsey furrowed his brows. “Go ahead, I’m playing with my hands, not my ears.”

I closed my eyes and thought. You better be prepared because the game's getting started