Page 30 of Unraveled

So far, she was succeeding.

Or it seemed so.

She hadn’t stayed in bed for hours on end. She went out and did things, grabbed groceries, paid bills, and whatever else needed done. It wasn’t like she was a social butterfly, but she made it a point to grab coffee with a couple of friends, and have lunch with her aunt, too. Which was a hell of a lot more than she had been doing before.

Cara hadn’t realized how deep her head had been stuck in the sand for all those months. To an extent, she had liked the darkness of being alone, even if the loneliness felt like it might kill her.

She figured, what did it matter?

No one would be able to understand her grief, anyhow.

Cara was right on that end.

No one did understand.

But they sympathized.

Maybe it was that the hardest part of her grief was finally waning enough to let her breathe. Maybe she had somehow managed to survive the depression that had sank its dirty claws into her mind for so long. Or maybe forcing herself to do normal things and actually see what was happening around her had been enough to wake her the hell up.

Maybe it was none of those things.

She did know that whatever it was, she was grateful. There was nothing to life, if a person wasn’t living it. Lea would have understood that better than anyone else.

“Hey, Cara!”

She had opened the main doors to Hall Three to leave, but turned to face the familiar girl running up to her. Lynn had been one of the few mutual friends that Cara and Lea had shared together, who had come from them attending the university.

“What’s up, Lynn?”

The girl smiled widely. “Just wondered if maybe you might want to hang out this weekend? We’re all thinking of heading to the new club that opened up in Niagara Falls.”

“That club is supposed to be crazy popular right now, isn’t it?”

“Yep.”

“So, four hours of waiting in line to get inside a club that is so full, you can barely see what’s happening five feet in front of you?” Cara asked, slightly amused.

Lynn shrugged. “I guess. You interested?”

“Not this weekend, but thanks.”

Cara didn’t regret refusing the invite. She didn’t have shit going on, she had no plans coming up, and she liked that fine. Lynn didn’t seem to mind either, giving her friend a hug before heading back in the direction she came.

Normal, Cara found herself repeating.

Like a damn mantra.

She was coming to learn that sometimes, breaks were good, too. A break from the world, from friends, and from life. It didn’t mean she was doing worse or whatever, just that she needed a little time out.

That’s what she wanted this weekend.

A little time out.

Of course, he would be waiting in front of her apartment building when Cara got off the city bus. Of course, he would be wearing one of those fucking three-piece suits, looking like a goddamn God, as though he had nowhere else better to be in that moment.

And fuck, did he look good.

Cara hated how almost every part of her knew instantly that her attraction to this man was not the least bit containable or innocent.