Chapter Five
The cafeteria smelled faintly of coffee and food, the scent that clung to hospital walls no matter how sterile they tried to keep the place. Ashley sat across from Carl and Susan, their trays lined with half-eaten sandwiches and plastic cups of water.
Carl leaned back in his chair, loosening the knot of his tie. “You’re quiet today, Ash. That’s not like you. Usually, you’re the one teasing me about my tragic choice of lunch.”
Ashley stirred her soup absently, not really hungry. “Maybe I’m giving you a break.”
“Unlikely,” Susan said with a small smile. She was always perceptive, always watching. “Something’s up. I can tell.”
Ashley forced a laugh, the sound brittle even to her own ears. “Nothing’s up. Just tired. Kids, work, life, you know the drill.”
But Carl wasn’t buying it. “Come on, I’ve known you too long. You’ve got that look.”
“What look?”
“The one that says you’re trying to carry the world on your back without asking for help.” His voice softened. “What’s going on?”
Ashley hesitated. It wasn’t like her to spill personal things at work. Hospitals were gossip mills; whispers traveled faster than lab results but Carl and Susan weren’t just colleagues. They were friends. People she’d trusted for years.
She lowered her spoon and folded her hands in her lap. “It’s Kingston.”
Susan tilted her head, her dark eyes narrowing with concern. “Is he okay?”
Ashley exhaled. “I don’t know. He’s…different lately. Distracted. Always on his phone, late nights at work and then—” She stopped herself. Saying Rebecca’s name felt too dangerous, too raw, like giving shape to something she wasn’t ready to confront out loud.
“And then what?” Carl pressed gently.
Ashley glanced around the cafeteria, making sure no one else was listening. “I found a message on his phone the other night. From a woman.”
Neither Carl nor Susan spoke immediately, but their silence was heavy with implication.
Ashley pushed through it. “It said…‘Ten years, and I still wonder what could have been.’”
Susan’s lips parted, her hand tightening around her coffee cup. “Ashley.”
Carl leaned forward, elbows on the table. “Do you know who she is?”
Ashley’s throat tightened. “Yes. Rebecca Jane. She works at Kingston’s hospital.”
Recognition flickered in Carl’s eyes. “I’ve heard of her. Brilliant, ambitious. Single.”
Ashley flinched at the word, though he hadn’t meant it as a knife. “I confronted him, lightly. He admitted they dated once, years ago, but brushed it off. Said it meant nothing.”
“Do you believe him?” Susan asked softly.
The question hung between them like a blade. Ashley wanted to say yes, wanted to cling to the man she’d built a life with, the father of her children but the truth crawled up her throat like bile. “I don’t know anymore.”
Carl reached across the table, his hand brushing her wrist. “You don’t deserve this uncertainty. Whatever’s going on, you deserve the truth.”
Ashley nodded, blinking back the sting in her eyes. “I just…I can’t fall apart right now. The kids need me steady. I can’t—” Her voice broke, and she pressed her lips together, swallowing hard.
Susan’s gaze softened. “You don’t have to fall apart, Ash but you don’t have to carry it alone, either. We’re here. Always.”
For a moment, Ashley allowed herself to breathe in that comfort, the quiet assurance of friendship. It didn’t fix anything, but it steadied her just enough to make it through the rest of the day.
That night, the house was unusually quiet.
Kingston had texted that he’d be working late again, charting, he claimed.
Ashley had stared at the message longer than she should have, her stomach twisting with questions she couldn’t silence.
Leah arrived just after eight. Best friends since college, Leah was the kind of woman who filled a room just by stepping into it.
Tall, confident, with a laugh that dared the world to keep its secrets.
Ashley was curled on the couch with a mug of tea, the TV playing low in the background.
Leah plopped down beside her, kicking off her heels.
“Okay, spill. I can tell from your text you weren’t inviting me over for a casual girls’ night.”
Ashley gave a weak smile. “You always see through me.”
“Of course I do. Now, talk.” Leah tucked one leg under herself and faced her fully. “What’s going on with you and Kingston?”
Ashley gripped her mug, her fingers warming against the ceramic. “He’s been off. Distracted and I found something. A message.”
Leah’s brows lifted. “From who?”
Ashley hesitated, then whispered, “Rebecca Jane.”
The name landed like a stone between them.
Leah let out a slow, incredulous breath. “You’re telling me that something is going on with Kingston and Rebecca?”
Ashley nodded, her throat tight.
“What did the message say?”
Ashley’s voice cracked as she repeated the words. “‘Ten years, and I still wonder what could have been.’”
Leah’s eyes flared. “Oh, hell no. That’s not just some random colleague reaching out. That’s loaded.”
“I know.” Ashley’s voice was barely a whisper.
“And I don’t know what to do. Part of me wants to scream, to demand the truth but the other part—” She broke off, pressing the heel of her hand to her forehead.
“The other part just wants to hold it together for the kids. Pretend nothing’s happening until I’m strong enough to face it. ”
Leah’s expression softened, but her voice was fierce. “Ashley, you can’t keep bleeding in silence. You deserve answers. You deserve honesty.”
“I’m afraid of what honesty will destroy.”
Leah reached over, gently prying the mug from her hands and setting it on the table.
“Ash, I love you, but listen to me. You’re already being destroyed.
Piece by piece. Every time he lies by omission, every time you see her name on his lips or his phone, it chips away at you.
The truth won’t break you. Living in the dark will. ”
Tears spilled down Ashley’s cheeks before she could stop them.
Leah pulled her into an embrace, holding her tightly as she trembled.
For a long time, Ashley stayed there, letting her friend’s strength steady her, letting the tears she’d held back finally fall and in the quiet of that moment, she knew Leah was right.
The truth would come, one way or another.
The only question was whether she’d find it herself or wait until it shattered her completely.