Aurora Magazine 2018

“Just shut up.” “Why should I,” he growled through gritted teeth. “Because. Just please shut up.” “Fine.” The couple walked, the silence growing heavy between them. Both stared away from the other, the girl at the ground with water in her eyes and the man straight ahead, his expres- sion smooth and empty. The sun shone down on them, decep- tively cheerful, and they soon reached the end of the tracks, where they stopped. Suddenly, the girl turned on her heels and began to walk away towards town and her car. The man slowly turned to follow her, but as he did so, he pulled out his phone, checking for messages one last time. His screen was lit up, a message from “Sam” filling the space. His lips turned up slightly, but he ignored it and quietly slid his phone back into his pocket. “Hey. You okay,” he asked the girl as he caught up to her. “I’m fine. Don’t worry about me,” she whispered. “I’ll be fine. Just… fine.” Her eyes widened as pools of water formed in their corners. She willed them to go away then, wiping her eyes dry, she said, “Are you sure you can’t go out this week? ‘Cause I’d really like to spend time with you.” He stared down at his feet. “I’m sorry Alyssa, but prob- ably not. I’ll… try, but no guarantees.” The girl nodded, fighting back a fresh wave of tears. “Oh… I was just wondering…” she began, her voice trailing off, growing quieter. “What?” “Who is Sam?” F I T T O N

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