Cheating
707 Words
Late Hours
The office had thinned out like the last few grains of sand slipping through a narrow hourglass. The humming of the vending machine near the back wall echoed louder without the buzz of chatter or the tapping of multiple keyboards to cover it. Seren stood by Rowan's desk with her bag slung over her shoulder, the low fluorescent lights casting a warm glow over her calm features.
"Heading out," she said with a soft smile, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. "I'll see you at home?"
Rowan stood and offered her a small nod, distracted as he adjusted the files on his desk. "Yeah, I'll be there soon. Just gonna finish this up real quick."
Seren leaned in and pecked him on the cheek, her lips brushing his skin gently. "Don't stay too late."
"I won't," he said, smiling thinly.
As she walked away, the office doors shut behind her with a soft click, and silence settled in again. Or so Rowan thought. "Boo."
Delaney's voice came from behind a pillar just around the corner. Rowan jumped slightly, spinning to face her as she stepped out of the shadows with a mischievous grin painted across her lips.
"Delaney?" he said, surprised. "You're still here?"
She shrugged, her short brown hair bouncing playfully as she stepped toward him, hands behind her back. "I was helping file reports for accounting. Thought I'd hang around to see if anyone interesting was still lurking." Her tone was teasing, syrupy sweet.
Rowan exhaled a laugh. "You're ridiculous."
She stepped closer, tilting her head. "You like that, though."
Rowan gave a half-smirk, his eyes scanning her face, her posture, the playful confidence she carried so naturally. She was wearing a cropped sweater under her blazer, and even in the dim light, she looked alive in a way Seren never quite did in moments like this.
To Rowan, Seren was safe. Kind. Loyal. The kind of person you settle down with. She was always there when needed, always careful, always proper. But Delaney, Delaney sparked fire in otherwise dull places.
"I always thought you had a thing for danger," Delaney teased, reaching out to tug lightly at the lapel of his jacket. "The way you look at me sometimes? I know what it means."
Rowan swallowed hard but didn't step away. His body language remained open, too open. "You're trouble," he murmured, but there was no conviction in the warning.
Delaney laughed softly. "Yeah... but I'm fun trouble."
There was a brief pause, a breathless, charged moment where neither moved. Then Rowan leaned in. Their lips met in the stillness of the office, soft at first, tentative, until Delaney leaned further into him and his hand found her waist. The kiss deepened with unsaid thoughts, unexplored possibilities, and buried guilt.
Neither noticed the soft glow of a desk lamp in the distance. Across the Room, Malrick's Office The lights were off in Malrick's office. Only the faint reflection of the city skyline from the window pane lit his face. He had never left. He sat still, quiet as a statue behind his sleek black desk, fingers folded together, his eyes narrowed just enough to watch without being seen.
The glass walls that made up his office gave him a view of almost the entire floor, a benefit of his position. He watched them, Rowan and Delaney, with the same expression someone might use when watching animals at a zoo: curious, maybe even slightly amused. But beneath it, there was something colder.
The smirk that pulled at the corner of his lips wasn't one of joy. It was something darker. Something knowing. He leaned back slowly in his chair, shadow swallowing the edges of his face, and he whispered almost to himself, "So that's what you are, Rowan." He tapped one finger slowly on the arm of his chair. The tension in the air seemed to grow heavier around him, even though no one else could feel it. Only the quiet thrum of distant traffic outside and the office's ticking wall clock kept time as the scene unfolded.
Malrick turned back to his screen without another word. But the image of that kiss, of loyalty fractured in silence, stayed with him.
- Writer
