Page 14 of Escape

Nothing. Just blank stares and a few guilty glances.

Fucking cowards.

My chair nearly topples as I shove it aside. "I’m done with this."

I storm out, the door rattling on its hinges behind me.

I don’t even remember walking back to my desk, but here I am, staring at my screen, the words blurring together. My hands are still shaking. My pulse still too fast.

I shouldn’t have lost it like that.

No. They shouldn’t have said what they did.

Footsteps approach, steady and deliberate. I glance up and see Andrea standing there.

"Got a minute?" she asks gently.

I swallow and nod, pushing my chair back. She gestures towards the small meeting room, and I follow her in. The door clicks shut behind us.

Andrea doesn’t jump straight in. She sits across from me, hands resting on the table, letting a beat of silence pass before she speaks.

"I heard what happened." Her voice is soft, no judgement, just observation.

I tense, bracing myself. "Look, I know I shouldn’t have—"

"I’m not here to lecture you," she says before I can spiral. "I just want to check in. You okay?"

I exhale through my nose, shaking my head. "No, not really."

Andrea nods, like she expected that. "I get it, Mel. I really do." She hesitates, then leans forward slightly. "I know how much Arif meant to you."

My throat tightens. I stare at the table.

"I also know that this job takes a toll," she continues. "What was said in that meeting was out of line. I’ll deal with that. But I need to know thatyouare okay too. You don’t need to deal with this on your own."

A flash of heat rises in my chest. "I’m not alone," I say quickly. "I have Owen."

The words taste defensive, but as soon as I say his name, something in me twists.

I think about the way I spoke to him this morning. The way I brushed him off when he reached out. There is that guilt again. I shouldn’t have done that. He doesn’t deserve it.

He’s always there, steady and unshakable, no matter how many times I push him away. He knows when to joke, when to let me be, when to pull me back from the edge. I feelsafewith him.

So why am I trying so hard to shut him out?

Andrea watches me carefully, like she’s seeing the thoughts race across my face. "He’s a good friend?" she asks.

"The best," I say quietly, swallowing the lump in my throat.

"That’s good. But you have toletpeople be there for you, Mel. Owen, me, the rest of the team. You can’t lock people out."

I exhale sharply. "I’m not locking people out."

Andrea just gives me a look. The kind that saysyou know that’s not true.

I shift uncomfortably in my chair.

"You’re one of the best people on this team," she says. "But even the strongest people need a break."

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