Chapter 72
2310 Words
✨Unavailable by Design✨
Elena Vale
Elena didn’t turn back to her screen right away.
She watched Garrett for a second, his hand resting against the edge of her cubicle, his smile easy—too easy.
“The guys were wondering if you’d hang tonight,” he said again, like repeating it might change her answer.
“The guys,” Elena echoed, leaning back slightly in her chair, arms folding loosely. “You mean the same guys who disappear when reports are due?”
Garrett laughed under his breath. “Okay, fair. But it’s not like we’re asking you to audit us.”
“And,” she added calmly.
He hesitated, rubbing the back of his neck. “And… I was wondering if you’d come.”
Elena tilted her head slightly, studying him.
“You’re combining group pressure with personal interest.”
“That sounds worse than it is.”
“It usually is.”
He smiled, undeterred. “Come on. Just a drink. You’ve been buried in that cubicle all week.”
She glanced at her screen, then back at him.
“I have work.”
“You always have work.”
“Yes.”
Garrett leaned a little closer, lowering his voice like he was negotiating something serious.
“One hour.”
“No.”
“Forty-five minutes.”
“No.”
“Thirty?”
Elena raised an eyebrow.
“Are you bargaining with me?”
“I’m trying.”
She almost smiled, but caught it.
“I’m not available tonight.”
“You’re never available.”
“I’m very available,” she corrected. “Just not for this.”
Garrett exhaled, shifting his weight.
“It’s just drinks, Elena. Nothing complicated.”
“It becomes complicated when deadlines don’t move.”
“They’ll still be there tomorrow.”
“So will I.”
He shook his head, half amused, half frustrated.
“You’re really not going to come.”
“No.”
A small pause.
Then—
“You don’t even sound tempted.”
Elena picked up her pen, tapping it lightly against her desk.
“I am.”
Garrett blinked. “You are?”
“Yes.”
His face brightened immediately. “Then come—”
“I’m choosing not to.”
That stopped him.
He stared at her for a second, trying to process it.
“That doesn’t make sense.”
“It does to me.”
He let out a short laugh. “You’re impossible.”
“I’ve been told that.”
Garrett straightened, taking a step back from the cubicle.
“Alright,” he said, hands lifting in surrender. “I tried.”
“You did.”
He lingered a second longer.
“You sure you don’t want me to stay and keep you company while you work?”
Elena looked up at him again.
“That would slow me down.”
“I can be quiet.”
“You won’t.”
He smiled.
“…Probably not.”
She nodded once.
“Goodnight, Garrett.”
Another pause.
Then he sighed.
“Goodnight, Elena.”
He turned and walked off, disappearing down the row of cubicles.
Elena watched him go for a moment—
Then turned back to her screen.
Her focus snapping back into place like it never left.
---
Elena stood barefoot near the window of her hotel room, the curtains half open to the Carolina night. The city outside was quieter than she expected—soft lights, distant traffic, unfamiliar but calm.
Her phone buzzed in her hand.
Ari.
She answered before the second ring.
“Hello.”
A brief pause.
Then his voice, steady as always.
“You made it.”
Elena smiled faintly, leaning her shoulder against the glass.
“Yes.”
“How’s the room?”
She glanced around.
“Clean. Quiet. Predictable.”
“Boring.”
She let out a soft laugh. “You’re not here to complain about it, so it works.”
A slight pause.
“I noticed.”
Elena tilted her head.
“You noticed what?”
“That you didn’t complain.”
She rolled her eyes, though her smile stayed.
“I don’t complain that much.”
“You do. Just not out loud.”
She huffed softly.
“You’re very observant.”
“Yes.”
She walked over to the bed and sat down, tucking one leg beneath her.
“What time is it there?” she asked.
“Late.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“It’s past midnight.”
Elena’s brows pulled slightly. “And you’re still at the office?”
“Yes.”
She shook her head.
“You don’t rest.”
“I do.”
“When?”
A small pause.
“When you're here.”
She went quiet for a second, caught off guard.
“You’re saying that on purpose.”
“Yes.”
She smiled despite herself, lying back against the pillows.
“You’re impossible.”
“And you’re in a hotel room thinking about me.”
Her lips parted slightly.
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t have to.”
Elena exhaled softly, staring up at the ceiling.
“It’s different here.”
“Explain.”
“It’s quiet,” she said. “Too quiet.”
Ari didn’t respond immediately.
“You don’t like it.”
“I don’t mind it,” she corrected. “It just… feels off.”
Another pause.
“Because I’m not there.”
She closed her eyes briefly.
“You’re very confident.”
“Yes.”
She turned onto her side, holding the phone closer now.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Working.”
“Still?”
“Yes.”
Elena frowned slightly.
“You should go home.”
“No.”
“Ari—”
“I’ll leave when I’m finished.”
She sighed softly.
“You’re stubborn.”
“Yes.”
“And exhausting.”
“Yes.”
A small smile pulled at her lips again.
“You’re not even trying to deny it.”
“No.”
She shifted slightly on the bed, pulling the blanket over her legs.
“I don’t like being away,” she admitted quietly.
The words came out before she could filter them.
Silence followed.
Not awkward.
Just… full.
“Noted,” he said finally.
Her chest tightened slightly at how simple he made it sound.
“You’re not going to say anything else?”
“What would you like me to say?”
“I don’t know… something normal.”
“I’ll be here when you get back.”
Her breath slowed.
“That’s not normal.”
“It’s accurate.”
Elena smiled softly, her voice quieter now.
“I miss you.”
Another pause.
Longer this time.
Then—
“I know.”
She frowned slightly.
“That’s all I get?”
“No.”
A beat.
“I miss you too beautiful.”
Her eyes softened.
“Was that so hard?”
“No.”
“Then why didn’t you say it first?”
“I prefer when you say it.”
She laughed softly.
“You’re unbelievable.”
“Yes.”
Elena settled deeper into the bed, her body relaxing now.
“You should go home,” she said again, softer this time.
“I will.”
“When?”
“Soon.”
She didn’t argue this time.
“Okay.”
A quiet moment passed between them.
Then—
“Sleep,” he said.
“I will.”
“Elena.”
“Yes?”
“Lock your door.”
She smiled.
“I already did.”
“Check again.”
She rolled her eyes but got up anyway, walking to the door and testing the handle.
“It’s locked.”
“Good.”
She returned to the bed.
“You’re very protective.”
“Yes.”
“I’m fine.”
“I know.”
She lay back down, pulling the blanket up.
“Goodnight, Ari.”
A pause.
“Goodnight, Elena.”
She didn’t hang up right away.
Neither did he.
And in the quiet distance between Carolina and Europe—
They stayed on the line just a little longer.
The line had been quiet for a while.
Not empty—just… comfortable.
Elena was comfortable, phone pressed lightly to her ear, eyes unfocused on the ceiling.
Then, almost casually—
“Garrett asked me out.”
Silence.
Not long.
But different this time.
Ari’s voice came, steady.
“And?”
Elena’s lips pressed together faintly.
“I said no.”
Another pause.
Softer now.
“Why?” he asked.
She tilted her head slightly, a hint of something in her tone.
“You want a detailed analysis?”
“Yes.”
Elena exhaled lightly, glancing down at her desk.
“I had work.”
“That’s not the reason.”
She almost smiled.
“It’s one of them.”
Ari didn’t respond.
He waited.
Of course he did.
Elena shifted in her bed.
“He was… nice,” she admitted.
“I’m aware.”
Her brows lifted slightly.
“You know him?”
“No.”
“Then how are you aware?”
“Men who ask you out are usually nice.”
She let out a small breath, somewhere between a laugh and disbelief.
“That’s a very general assumption.”
“It’s accurate.”
She shook her head slightly.
“He tried to convince me.”
“And?”
“I didn’t let him.”
Another pause.
Then—
“You weren’t interested.”
It wasn’t a question.
Elena’s voice softened just a fraction.
“No.”
Ari exhaled quietly on the other end.
Not relief.
Not surprise.
Just… acknowledgment.
“He asked properly?” Ari said after a moment.
“Yes.”
“He was respectful?”
“Yes.”
“And you still said no.”
“Yes.”
A small silence settled again.
Then—
“Good.”
Elena blinked slightly.
“That’s all you’re going to say?”
“No.”
A beat.
“I don’t like it.”
Her lips curved faintly.
“You don’t like a lot of things.”
“Yes.”
“He just asked me out, Ari.”
“I know.”
“And I said no.”
“I know.”
She leaned back further, letting her head rest against the headboard.
“Then why don’t you like it?”
Another pause.
This one longer.
Because when Ari spoke again, his voice was lower.
“Because someone else saw what I see.”
Elena’s breath caught slightly.
“You don’t get to be territorial.”
“I’m not.”
“That sounded territorial.”
“It’s observational.”
She let out a soft laugh.
“You’re impossible.”
“Yes.”
Her fingers tapped lightly against the pillow.
“You didn’t even ask if I considered it.”
Ari didn’t hesitate.
“You didn’t.”
She stilled.
“…You’re very sure of that.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
A small pause.
Then—
“Because you told me.”
Elena frowned slightly.
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t have to.”
Silence.
Then her voice softened, quieter now.
“I said no because I didn’t want to go.”
“Yes.”
“And because I’m busy.”
“Yes.”
A beat.
“And because…” she started, then stopped.
Ari didn’t interrupt.
He waited.
He always waited.
Elena exhaled slowly.
“And because I’m already talking to you.”
The words settled between them.
Heavy.
Clear.
Ari’s voice, when it came, was quieter than before.
“Not talking.”
Her brows pulled slightly.
“No?”
“No.”
A pause.
“More than that.”
Elena’s heart shifted in her chest.
She didn’t argue.
Didn’t correct him.
Because he wasn’t wrong.
“You didn’t sound worried,” she said after a moment.
“I’m not.”
“Not even a little?”
“No.”
She smiled faintly.
“That’s a lot of confidence.”
“Yes.”
“In yourself?”
“In you.”
That—
That landed differently.
Elena went quiet for a second.
“You trust me,” she said softly.
“Yes.”
“Just like that?”
“No.”
A beat.
“I learned you.”
Her chest tightened slightly.
“You make everything sound simple.”
“It is.”
“It’s not.”
“It is with you.”
She shook her head, though he couldn’t see it.
“You’re very sure about things.”
“Yes.”
Another small silence passed.
Then Elena said—
“You didn’t ask me what I said exactly.”
Ari’s voice came, calm.
“You said no.”
“I did.”
“And that’s enough.”
Her lips curved again, softer this time.
“You’re very… calm about this.”
“Yes.”
“You’re not even going to pretend to be jealous?”
A small pause.
“I don’t pretend.”
She laughed quietly.
“Of course you don’t.”
Then—
quieter—
“I chose you.”
The words slipped out before she could stop them.
Silence.
This time—
he didn’t answer right away.
And when he did—
his voice had changed.
Just slightly.
“Say that again.”
Elena’s breath caught.
“…No.”
“Yes.”
She shook her head, a small smile forming.
“You heard me.”
“I did.”
“Then that’s enough.”
A pause.
Then—
“No.”
She laughed softly.
“You’re not letting that go, are you?”
“No.”
She exhaled, softer now.
“…I chose you Ari.”
Silence.
But not empty.
Ari’s voice came back, lower.
“I know.”
And somehow—
That felt more powerful than if he’d said anything else.
- Writer
