Page 5 of As the World Falls

“Successful in what?”

“I’m chief of operations for Labyrinth Crystals.”

I blink slowly in disbelief. It was not what I expected him to say. “Labyrinth Crystals, as in… you sell jewelry?”

He chuckles. “Not exactly. The company does, but it’s a lot more than that. I’m second in command after the company's CEO, James Kingston.”

“Oh wow,” I sputter. I knew nothing about crystals, but I had heard of Labyrinth Crystals and knew they were a big deal, so it was a little alarming to me to suddenly hear that he was second in command after the CEO.

“I’m doing really well, Cecilia,” he says, breaking me from my thoughts. “And I want you in my life again. I’m a better man now.”

My heart softens despite the anxiety, making it thump harder than usual. “I’ve really missed you.”

This time, he pulls me into a gentler hug, breaking the dam in me. It’d been so long since I’d seen him—even longer since I’d seen him sober and this happy. I think the last time was when we were teenagers.

“Cecilia, what’s going on?” I hear Lance's voice and pull away from Tobias as I wipe under my eyes. Lance’s eyes bounce from Tobias to me and widen as he looks at him again. “Oh my god, Tobias?”

“Hey, Lance,” Tobias waves, then looks down at me. “You guys work together after all these years?”

I shrug, smiling as I glance at Lance, who grins back at me. “He’s a mess without me. I had to keep him close.”

“I see,” Tobias quips. “How long have you guys been together?”

Lance clears his throat uncomfortably as I begin sputtering like a sea creature again. “Oh, we’re not… he’s not my… we’re still friends. Neighbors too. And co-workers…but we’re not…”

“Jesus,” Tobias interrupts me. “Calm down. It was just a question. My mistake.”

“Right,” I rush out, catching my breath.

“Is there any way I can convince you to ditch work today?” Tobias then asks. “I’d like to catch up with you.”

I look over at Lance, who nods, letting me know he’d watch the library for the day. “Sure, let’s go get some lunch.”

Thirty minutes later, we arrived at the restaurant, which was fancier than I had anticipated. I didn’t even know Boston had a restaurant like this, and I felt underdressed.

“You look nervous,” Tobias says as I sit across from him in one of the booths.

“That’s because I am.”

“Why?”

“This all just feels…a little surreal to me. Also, I’m pretty sure I could eat my lunch off the floor of this place, and it’d be sanitary enough. Are you sure you can afford?—”

He waves his hand out, cutting me off. “It’s no problem for me. Seriously. Money is a nonissue.”

“Wow, must be nice.” The second they blast through, I shove the reminder of my student loans right out of my head. I wasn’t struggling by any means. I made enough to live and have extra money here and there, but did I always have never-ending bills that I felt I’d never be able to pay off? Yes. It was stressful all the same.

His brows furrow, and I can’t help but stare at him. He looked so grown up now. Granted, he was thirty years old and bound to look grown, but I guess he looked like a man now.

“You’re not having money problems, are you?”

I wave my hand now like he did. “Oh, no. I do fine. I have student loans and things like that, but that’s life.”

He observes me for a moment longer before pulling his menu off the table to gander at. “I see,” he says, and I can’t help but giggle. He looks at me over the menu, and I quickly silence myself by pressing the tips of my fingers to my lips. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing.”

“Lia.”

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