Episode 2 Back to Seattle
797 Words
That night, Sahara sat on her bed, laptop open, pretending to read job listings. But her mind was miles away — back in that glass office, staring into the eyes of the man who once promised her forever.
She kept replaying his expression when she’d walked in — the shock, the disbelief, and that fleeting softness just before he hid behind his professional mask.
He looked good. Too good.
And that made everything worse.
Sahara shut the laptop and rubbed her temples.
“Why him?” she whispered into the quiet of her room.
Of all the offices in L.A. and the interviews she could’ve attended, why did fate have to bring him back into her life?
She got up and walked to the window, watching the city lights shimmer in the distance. She should decline any offer from that firm. It would be too complicated. Too painful.
But then, as the glow of Los Angeles blurred outside her window, her heart wandered back to Seattle — the city where it all began.
She remembered the damp scent of rain and pine that always hung in the air. The way the campus looked in the fall, golden leaves scattered across wet pavements, students huddled under umbrellas. And somewhere in the middle of it all.
They met when she was in her sophomore year while he was in his senior year at the University of Washington. She was studying Marketing, and he was that brilliant Architecture major everyone seemed to know — confident, quiet, and effortlessly magnetic.
Their first meeting wasn’t planned. It happened in the library during midterms, reaching for the same copy of Urban Aesthetics. He’d smiled, rain still dripping from his hair, and said, “You can have it… But only if you promise to let me borrow your smile sometime.”
She’d laughed — shy at first — but something about him stayed with her.
Soon, it was coffee dates in little cafés tucked between rainy streets. Study sessions that turned into shared playlists and whispered dreams. Late-night walks along Lake Washington, where the skyline shimmered across the water and his hand always found hers.
He’d sketch buildings on napkins while she planned imaginary marketing campaigns for them — both of them convinced they’d build an empire together one day.
She could still hear his voice — low, steady — the night he told her, “When I make it big, I’m building our dream house. Ocean view. Big windows. A purple kitchen, because that’s your favorite color.”
Back then, she believed him with her whole heart.
But life had other plans.
He got an internship offer in New York — one too prestigious to turn down. He promised they’d survive the distance, the love that real couldn’t fade. And for a while, they did long calls, long messages—Until she stopped reaching him, he never called again. Then came silence.
No goodbye. Just distance that felt like betrayal.
The heartbreak hollowed her out. She’d learned to smile again, to bury the past under ambition and success after school — until now
Her phone buzzed, snapping her out of her thoughts.
Unknown number.
“Hello?” she answered cautiously.
“Good evening, Ms. Nelson,” came a bright, professional voice. “This is Fibby from William & Gray Realty Group. I’m calling to inform you that you’ve been selected for the associate position. Congratulations!”
Sahara froze. “I… I got the job?”
“Yes, ma’am. Your start date is Monday morning at nine. You’ll receive your onboarding documents shortly.”
Her throat went dry. “He… did what?”
The woman laughed lightly, oblivious to the storm in Sahara’s tone. “Yes! You’re lucky. He rarely supervises new hires personally.”
Sahara forced a polite laugh. “Yes… lucky.”
When the call ended, she dropped her phone onto the couch and sank back, staring blankly at the ceiling.
She should be thrilled — this was the job she’d wanted for months.
But the thought of working directly under him made her chest tighten.
“You can do this, Sahara,” she whispered. “You worked too hard to walk away now.”
Her gaze drifted back to the glittering skyline. Somewhere beyond those city lights, maybe fate was watching — testing her, or giving her something she didn’t know she still needed.
For the first time that night, she allowed herself a small smile.
Maybe fate wasn’t trying to break her again.
Maybe it was giving her the chance to see if love — the kind she once lost in the rain—could find its way back.
She drew a deep breath and straightened her shoulders.
“Monday,” she murmured. “Let’s see what you’ve got.”
- Writer
