Chapter 10 - The Last Normal Day
Athena woke before the sun again.
She didn't move at first.
She just lay there, staring at the faint outline of the ceiling while James slept beside her. His arm was draped across her waist, heavy and warm, like it always was.
She tried to take comfort in it.
Tried to convince herself that everything felt normal.
But there was a strange heaviness in her chest.
Like grief.
And she didn't know why.
She turned her head slightly and studied James's face in the dim light. His brow was tight even in sleep. His jaw clenched like he was fighting something in his dreams.
She reached up and brushed her fingers lightly across his cheek.
He didn't stir.
A sudden thought entered her mind, uninvited and painful:
What if he gets tired of me?
The thought made her throat tighten.
She had always been afraid of that.
Of not being wanted.
Of being too easy to replace.
She slipped out of bed quietly and went downstairs before the thought could grow roots.
?
The kitchen felt colder than usual.
She wrapped her arms around herself as the coffee brewed, staring out the window into the early gray light.
The trees were still.
Silent.
And for the first time in days...
She didn't feel watched.
That should have made her feel better.
Instead, it made her uneasy.
Like the silence before something breaks.
She busied herself with wiping counters, straightening chairs, aligning things that were already straight.
If her hands were moving, her thoughts stayed quiet.
But today, her mind wouldn't settle.
It kept drifting.
To the grocery store.
To the girl who said there was gold in her eyes.
To the strange woman at the door.
To the way James had looked scared.
She caught her reflection in the microwave door again and quickly looked away.
"I'm just tired," she whispered.
?
James came downstairs later than usual.
He didn't say good morning.
Didn't kiss her forehead.
He just poured coffee and stood there staring into the mug like he expected it to tell him something.
She watched him carefully.
"Are you okay?" she asked softly.
"Fine," he said.
She nodded.
She had learned not to ask again.
?
The day dragged slowly.
Athena vacuumed. Folded laundry. Remade the bed. Watered the plants.
She moved from room to room like she was trying to memorize the house without realizing it.
Her fingers trailed across the backs of chairs.
Across the walls.
Across the kitchen counter.
A strange ache filled her chest.
Like she was saying goodbye to something she didn't understand.
She paused in the hallway and looked toward the closet.
Toward the place where her nursing degree sat hidden behind storage boxes.
She almost went to get it.
Almost.
But she didn't.
Because James had told her she didn't need it.
And she didn't want to be difficult.
?
Around noon, she stepped outside to get the mail.
The air was crisp against her skin.
She stood at the end of the driveway longer than necessary, staring into the trees.
She didn't know why, but she felt like if she walked into them right now...
She wouldn't come back.
The thought scared her.
She hurried back inside.
?
That evening, she cooked James's favorite dinner.
She made everything exactly how he liked it.
Chicken. Potatoes. Vegetables seasoned carefully.
She lit a candle on the table without thinking.
The flame flickered softly between them as they ate.
James barely touched his food.
She watched him when he wasn't looking.
The tightness in his jaw.
The way his eyes kept drifting toward the windows.
Like he was waiting for something.
"James?" she asked gently.
He looked up quickly. "Yeah?"
"Did I do something wrong?"
The question slipped out before she could stop it.
His face changed.
"No. Why would you think that?"
"You just seem... far away."
He stared at her for a long moment.
Then forced a small smile. "You're imagining things."
She nodded.
Because that's what she did.
She believed him.
Or at least tried to.
?
That night, as they lay in bed, Athena couldn't sleep.
Her chest felt too full.
Too tight.
She rolled onto her side and looked at James.
He was awake.
Staring into the darkness.
She smiled softly at him.
"Tomorrow will be better," she whispered.
He didn't answer.
He just pulled her closer.
Held her tighter than he ever had before.
Like he already knew...
Tomorrow would be the last normal day she would ever have.