CHAPTER 1: The Message
570 Words
BEFORE WE SAY GOODBYE
A Second-Chance Romance
Written by Elena Rose
CHAPTER ONE
The Message
At 11:47 p.m., Emma Carter received a message from a number she had deleted eight years ago.
She knew who it was before she opened it.
Some names don't disappear simply because you stop saying them.
Emma sat curled up on the corner of her sofa, a blanket wrapped around her legs and a cup of tea growing cold on the coffee table. The television played quietly in the background, but she hadn't been paying attention for nearly half an hour.
She had been staring at her phone.
Then it vibrated.
Once.
Emma glanced at the screen.
Unknown Number
She frowned.
She almost ignored it.
Instead, she opened the message.
Hi, Em.
Her heart stopped.
Not literally.
But it felt that way.
The phone slipped slightly in her hand.
She stared at the two letters at the end of the message.
Em.
Nobody called her that anymore.
Nobody except one person.
Daniel.
Emma placed the phone on the table.
"No."
The word came out as a whisper.
She stood and walked toward the kitchen.
She opened the refrigerator.
Closed it.
She didn't know what she was doing.
She returned to the living room.
The phone vibrated again.
I know it's been a long time.
Emma stared at the message.
Eight years.
Eight years since she had seen him.
Eight years since he had walked away from their childhood street carrying a suitcase and a promise.
Eight years since she had waited for a phone call that never came.
She had been seventeen then.
She was thirty-one now.
A lifetime had happened between those two ages.
She had graduated from college.
Started her career.
Moved into her own apartment.
Changed jobs.
Lost friends.
Made new ones.
Learned how to pay bills without panicking.
Learned how to be alone.
Most importantly, she had learned how to stop waiting.
At least, she thought she had.
The phone vibrated again.
I'm coming home.
Emma's fingers tightened around the phone.
Home.
The word felt strange.
Daniel hadn't called the city home in years.
Not after leaving.
Not after disappearing.
Not after refusing to answer any of her calls.
Another message appeared.
I need to see you before I leave again.
Emma read it twice.
Before I leave again.
Her chest tightened.
She hated those words.
They reminded her of another goodbye.
A goodbye she had never understood.
A goodbye without an explanation.
A goodbye that had left an empty space in her life for years.
She sat down.
Her thumb hovered over the keyboard.
She typed:
Why?
She stared at the word.
Then deleted it.
She typed:
Who is this?
Deleted.
Finally, she wrote:
Okay.
She looked at the message for several seconds.
Then she pressed send.
Almost immediately, the reply appeared.
Tomorrow. 4:00 p.m. The old coffee shop?
Emma closed her eyes.
Of course.
The old coffee shop.
The place where they had spent countless afternoons when they were teenagers.
The place where Daniel had once told her that no matter where life took them, they would always find their way back.
Emma had believed him.
Until he left.
She typed:
I'll be there.
She placed the phone on the table.
Then she whispered to the empty room:
"What are you doing, Emma?"
She didn't know.
But for the first time in eight years, she was afraid of tomorrow.
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