Five Years, No Apologies
750 Words
(Dorcas )
~~~~~Five years later ~~~~~~~
Five years. That’s how long it’s been since I left this city. The Atlanta skyline still cut through the clouds like it always had, but something about it felt different now. Or maybe I was the one who’d changed. I leaned back in the car seat, fingers twitching with the ghost of memories I thought I’d buried, paved over with flour, sugar, and sleepless nights.
The window was rolled halfway down. The air smelled the same, peach blossoms, concrete, and something sharp and rich in between. My heels tapped softly against the limo’s carpet, but I didn’t feel the rhythm. Not really.
Els Haven had started as a humble street stall, just a quiet corner nook. Now, it stretched across continents. People whispered about the mysterious owner, the ghost behind the ovens. No face. Just a name. A brand that meant sweet salvation for millions.
They didn’t know it was me. Not even my family. Not even… them.
And that’s exactly how I wanted it.
I smoothed the front of my dress—a soft champagne shade that kissed my skin like it had been made for me. No loud labels, no logos screaming status. The fabric spoke for itself: minimalist, tailored, silent. Just like me now.
The party shimmered behind tall glass windows. Laughter spilled like champagne, bubbling over crystal flutes. Waiters moved like chess pieces in black and white. My heels clicked against the marble as I stepped inside, chin high, breath steady. This wasn’t my crowd. Not really. But Els Haven’s flagship store deserved this. Deserved me, standing here, watching what I built unfold.
I didn’t expect to see Jude. Not so soon, at least. But there he was. Leaning in close to Mara, her laugh too bright, too sharp. She spotted me first. Her lips curled like she’d bitten into a lemon.
Jude followed her gaze.
“Dorcas ,” Mara said, eyes scanning me like a barcode. “Didn’t know they let just anyone in here.”
Jude chuckled. Low. Lazy. Like old times. “Thought you moved out West. Disappeared.”
“I did,” I said evenly. “I’m back. For a while.”
“For what?” Mara tilted her head. “They hiring waitstaff now?”
Her words were daggers wrapped in sugar. Familiar. Precise.
I didn’t flinch.
“Just visiting,” I said. “Came to see the opening. Heard it’s a big deal.”
She smirked. “Yeah, real big. Shame it’s not your scene.”
Jude’s eyes lingered on me a second too long. “You look… different.”
I smiled. “Better?”
He didn’t answer.
I turned toward the bar, needing space. The lights felt too bright, the air too tight. I could hear Mara’s voice behind me—quieter now, sharper. Probably asking why I was really here. Probably guessing.
“Dorcas ?”
My spine stiffened. I hadn’t heard that voice in years.
Mother.
Her perfume hit before she did, lilacs and judgment. Pearls clung to her neck like secrets.
Brian stood beside her. Taller now. Shoulders squared. Eyes sharper than I remembered. And colder.
“I didn’t expect to see you here,” she said, lips barely moving.
“You came for the launch?”
She scoffed. “Mara invited us. Said it’d be… entertaining.”
My eyes found Brian . My boy. God, he had my nose. Jude’s eyes.
“Brian ,” I breathed, stepping closer. “You’ve grown so much.”
He didn’t smile. Didn’t nod. Just stood there, hands in his pockets. A wall already built.
I reached for him, aching—
“Don’t,” he said.
One word. One knife.
“I missed you,” I whispered, voice cracking, fingers curling into fists.
Mara stepped in, sliding beside Jude like she belonged there. “You see, Dorcas ,” she said, voice syrupy with venom, “some people know their place. You never did.”
Mother nodded, slow and sharp. “Maybe you should leave before it gets awkward.”
It already was.
I swallowed the lump in my throat but didn’t look away. I wouldn’t give them that.
Not again.
My silence was louder than their smirks.
Then—A warm hand settled on my back.
I didn’t need to turn. Kade.
My breath slipped out. My shoulders eased. Just a little.
“I’ll stay,” I said, eyes locked on Mara. “I belong here more than you know.”
- Writer
