"It's me!

" The familiar voice echoed down the hallway., I grabbed the railing abruptly, stopping in my tracks, my tense heart finally easing., After a moment, I turned and headed up the stairs, spotting Ernest lurking in the shadows., Recalling the awkwardness of our last encounter, I was at a loss for words. But the truth was, I was genuinely frightened. Putting on a facade of annoyance, I blurted out,

"Don't you know you look like a scene from a horror movie standing there?

",

"Yeah,

" that was his one-word reply., And he had no idea how that single word could be so infuriating yet so exasperatingly cool., Just as I was about to give him a piece of my mind, he murmured,

"Won't happen again.

", That left me speechless., So, I pulled out my keys to unlock the door., Just as I was about to turn the key, his voice filled the air once more, deep and solemn.

"I overthought things tonight. It won't happen again.

", Now it was my turn to be stunned. I turned around, and he was already stepping through his half-open door., As he was closing it, our eyes met.

"Goodnight.

", My mouth moved, but the words only escaped after his door had shut,

"What do you mean, 'won't happen again'?

", I understood, though. He wasn't ready to end our pretend relationship. But I seriously didn't want to continue, nor did I dare to., I even regretted asking Ernest to play the part of my boyfriend. Not because I feared he'd cling to me, but because I feared hurting him., He had never been in a relationship, yet he was being used by me, his first hug, handhold, and kiss all given to me., I felt utterly despicable., Cussing myself out in my head, I walked into my apartment, weighed down by guilt, which made for a lousy night's sleep. My dreams were haunted by Ernest, following me meekly, murmuring,

"Why did you kiss me? That was my first kiss.

" Waking up in a state of suppressed guilt, it was early, still dark outside., Checking the time, it was 4:30 AM., But I knew Ernest would already be up, probably out for his morning run., So, this was the best time to avoid him., Quickly getting ready, I made my escape., As my car merged into the early dawn, I realized how pathetic I felt, living in my own home yet feeling like a thief., To avoid Ernest, I started leaving early and coming back late, successfully avoiding any encounters., But every night, returning to find a cold breakfast by my door only deepened my guilt., I thought about messaging Ernest to stop preparing breakfast for me, but feared it might lead to further questions, so I chose to ignore it., I hoped he'd understand my intentions when he saw the untouched breakfasts., Sure enough, on the third day when I came back from work, the breakfast was gone., I breathed a sigh of relief, yet somewhere deep inside, I felt a pang of loss., I cursed myself for feeling this way..., You know the saying,

"If love life's a bust, work's a must,

"? Couldn't be more spot on. My work was going well, and I had even secured a big deal over the phone, just needing a face-to-face meeting to iron out the details.,

"Ms. Hudson, I heard you've been hitting the office at six every day?

" Grant caught up with me in the break room, smiling., Search the website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.