I spent a few days resting in Silvercliff City. Once corporate handled my paperwork, I officially started at the new company. My desk was right by the window; the breeze carried the faint, sweet scent of osmanthus. As I immersed myself in this new environment, my mood steadily improved.
I had been transferred as the General Manager of the branch. Most of the team under me were young, and the office culture was fantastic. Every time we closed a project, we’d all go out for dinner to celebrate.
And where there’s a group of young people, there’s always office gossip.
“Emily, you’re so gorgeous! Are you married?” one of the girls asked. “If not, I can introduce you to a total catch—my uncle’s son, Cambridge grad…”
“Hey, back off, you’re just trying to get on the boss’s good side!” another joked. “Emily is so successful, her line of suitors probably stretches all the way to France. She doesn’t need your help!”
The table erupted into chatter. I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Wait, Emily, after all that, you never answered—are you actually married?”
I set down my wine glass, my fingertips lightly tracing the cool rim.
“I am…” I paused. “But I should be divorced very soon.”
The day James finally gave up and signed those papers, I would be completely free.
The younger girls exchanged awkward glances, and nobody pushed the subject any further.
After the dinner wrapped up, I walked back to my apartment alone. The night air was chilly, so I pulled my coat tighter around myself, my steps a little floaty from the wine.
Unbidden, James’s face drifted into my mind. We had been out of contact for almost half a year. I had changed my phone number, deleted all my social media accounts, and even proactively blocked him on every new app I registered for. I had tried my hardest to drag myself out of that misery.
Maybe it was because the past had been brought up tonight, or maybe it was just the alcohol, but for the first time in a long while, I felt a familiar pang of sadness. When would a genuine heart ever be spared from being taken for granted?
“Emily.”
I thought I heard James calling my name. Before I could even turn my head, I was engulfed in a tight embrace.
