Chapter 6: The Distance Between Us
838 Words
Kathy's POV
Working at Apex Technology should have been a new beginning.
At least, that was what I told myself.
But every morning when I walked through those glass doors, I was reminded that my past was waiting for me on the top floor.
Luther.
The man I once loved.
The man I hurt.
The man who now looked at me as if I was nothing more than an employee.
I tried to convince myself that was better.
After everything that happened, I had no right to expect kindness from him.
For seven years, I had imagined what would happen if we met again.
Would he be angry?
Would he ask me why I left?
Would he hate me?
I never imagined he would become a stranger.
A stranger whose eyes still made my heart ache.
"Kathy."
I looked up from the documents on my desk.
Luther stood in front of me.
I immediately stood.
"Yes, Mr. Ashford?"
His eyes moved briefly to the files in my hands.
"The report for the meeting."
"It's ready."
I handed it to him.
He took it without a word.
For a moment, I thought he would leave.
But he didn't.
"You've been here for a week."
I looked at him.
"Yes."
"You're improving."
I was surprised.
It was the first time he had said something that sounded almost like praise.
"Thank you."
His expression changed slightly, as if he regretted saying it.
Then the cold mask returned.
"Don't misunderstand. I expect perfection from everyone who works for me."
My small smile disappeared.
"I understand."
He walked away.
I watched him enter his office.
Even after all these years, he still had the ability to make me feel things I didn't want to feel.
---
Luther's POV
I closed the office door behind me and placed the report on my desk.
It was well organized.
Better than I expected.
I hated admitting it, but Kathy was good at her job.
She always had been.
Even when we were younger, she was determined and hardworking.
I walked toward the window.
Why was I remembering those things?
I should only remember the pain.
The humiliation.
The way she looked at me like I was someone beneath her.
But my mind kept showing me different memories.
Kathy laughing.
Kathy stealing food from my plate.
Kathy holding my hand when I was struggling.
I clenched my fist.
Those memories were dangerous.
They made me forget what happened.
A knock interrupted my thoughts.
"Come in."
My assistant entered.
"Sir, the information you requested about the new employee is ready."
I looked at the folder in his hand.
For a moment, I hesitated.
Then I took it.
"Leave."
After he left, I stared at the folder.
I wanted answers.
But I wasn't sure what kind of answers I wanted.
I opened it.
Her name.
Her education.
Her work history.
Nothing unusual.
She had spent seven years in Canada.
She studied artificial intelligence.
She returned recently.
I stopped there.
There was nothing that explained why she became the person who broke me.
Nothing that explained why she walked away so easily.
I closed the folder.
Maybe I was wasting my time.
Maybe the truth didn't matter anymore.
But then I remembered her face in the elevator.
The fear in her eyes when she saw me.
Someone who truly didn't care wouldn't look at me that way.
---
Kathy's POV
After work, I went straight to the hospital.
My mother smiled when she saw me enter.
"You look tired."
I forced a smile.
"I'm fine, Mom."
She looked at me carefully.
"Kathy..."
I knew that tone.
The tone she used when she knew I was hiding something.
"Are you having trouble at work?"
I sat beside her.
"No. Everything is okay."
I didn't want her to worry.
I didn't want her to know that the person I had spent seven years trying to forget was now the person controlling my future.
My mother reached out and held my hand.
"You don't have to carry everything alone."
I looked away.
If only she knew.
If only she knew that the biggest burden I carried wasn't the hospital bills.
It was the guilt.
---
The next morning, I arrived at work early.
As I stepped out of the elevator, I unexpectedly saw Luther standing nearby.
For a moment, neither of us moved.
Seven years disappeared.
I saw the boy who used to smile at me.
He saw the girl who had broken his heart.
Then reality returned.
"Good morning, Mr. Ashford."
His expression turned cold.
"Good morning, Kathy."
Hearing my name from him still felt unfamiliar.
He walked past me.
But just before he disappeared into his office, he stopped.
"Kathy."
I looked up.
"Yes?"
His eyes met mine.
There were so many questions hidden inside them.
But he only said one thing.
"Why did you come back?"
My heart stopped.
Before I could answer, he walked away.
Leaving me with the one question I had been running from for seven years.
- Writer
