Amber stood at the door, her eyes red, the fruit basket already on the floor, everything scattered. Her lips trembled. “Did I come at the wrong time? I didn’t know you two were…” She bit her lip, like she couldn’t even finish.
Hudson pulled away from me instantly. “Amber, stop thinking nonsense! It’s not what it looks like. I was just helping her with the medicine, that’s it.”
Before I could react, he shoved me away.
Hard.
I lost balance and fell straight off the bed, the back of my head hitting the sharp edge of the table with a dull crack. Pain exploded and something warm started running down.
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to ruin your moment.” Amber’s voice broke as she turned. “I’ll go, you don’t have to explain…”
“Amber!” Hudson didn’t even hesitate. “Wait, listen to me. Don’t run off like this.” His voice turned urgent, almost angry. “Damn it, stop right there.”
He ran after her.
Didn’t look at me.
Not once.
The door slammed and everything went quiet again.
I stayed on the floor, my vision slowly blurring. Blood slid down past my temple, warm and sticky. I stared at the ceiling and suddenly laughed, soft and broken.
Why did I even hope?