Charlotte's breath hitched. The world seemed to tilt on its axis. She blinked rapidly, trying to process what he'd just said.
It wasn't anger. It wasn't an ultimatum. It was calm, detached. As if he had just said something normal.
Her grip tightened on her coat, staring blankly at him.
"You... you want to break up?" Her voice echoed.
He nodded, his lips pressed into a thin line.
"Yes... This isn't working anymore, Charlotte. We both know it. I don't think we're what we need. I'm sorry."
The words felt like a punch to the gut.
A part of her had always known, had felt it in the silence between them, in the moments when he'd pull away, even when they were supposed to be close.
But to hear him say it...so coldly, so easily...cut deeper than she ever thought possible.
She stood frozen, unable to speak. His words pressed on her chest, suffocating her.
"I...I don't understand. What about...what about everything we've shared?" she managed, her voice cracking.
"It's not enough anymore." He replied, not meeting her eyes.
Charlotte blinked, her eyes stinging as tears began to well up. She turned, quickly, swallowing back the hot tears threatening to spill over.
"Is... Is there someone else?" she whispered, her voice trembling.
"No," he said quickly. Too quickly. "It's not like that. I just… I can't do this anymore."
The finality in his tone shattered her. She took a shaky step back.
"I think I should go."
"Charlotte—"
But she didn't wait for him to finish as she turned and grabbed her bag, her vision swimming as the tears finally spilled over.
Charlotte's trembling hand reached for the door handle, her mind clouded by Alexander's words. She didn't want to hear more.
The door clicked softly behind her, but her world felt like it had slammed shut.
Stepping out, she barely registered the figure in front of her until she collided with them.
"Charlotte?" Eleanor's voice was sharp with surprise. She steadied Charlotte, her hands firm on her arms. "Are you okay? What happened?"
Charlotte shook her head, avoiding Eleanor's probing gaze. Her vision blurred as fresh tears escaped down her cheeks.
"What's going on?" Eleanor sounded worried, but Charlotte didn't reply.
She pulled away from Eleanor's grasp and hurried to the elevator, her chest heaving with suppressed sobs.
The ride down to the lobby felt like forever, the elevator walls closing in on her.
As the doors opened to the bustling ground floor, she paused. A thought pierced through the haze of her heartbreak.
'He should know.'
'He should know what I've been through, what I sacrificed while he was too busy to notice.'
Her finger hovered over the elevator panel before pressing the button to return to his floor.
When the doors opened again, Charlotte stepped out, her heart throbbing aggressively as she approached his office. She could barely hear her own footsteps over the rush of blood in her ears.
But as she neared the door, voices from inside stopped her in her tracks.
"Did you break up with her?" Eleanor's voice was low but distinct.
"Yes," Alexander replied, his tone calm, as though he were discussing a trivial matter.
"Finally, thank goodness!" Eleanor's voice carried a mixture of relief and smug. "Did she tell you?"
"Tell me what?" Alexander asked, his tone tinged with irritation.
"About the abortion," Eleanor said bluntly. "The one she had last month. You didn't know?"
There was a pause. Charlotte's breath hitched as she pressed herself against the wall outside the door. She never had an abortion. It was a miscarriage.
"No," Alexander replied slowly. "She didn't mention it."
"Oh," Eleanor's voice softened slightly, though the edge of disdain remained.
"I thought she would've told you by now. I mean, after what the doctor said about her chances of having children…"
Charlotte clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms.
"She didn't tell me any of this," Alexander murmured. "You're saying she had an abortion and can't—"
"Yes," Eleanor cut in, her tone clinical. "It's impossible for her to have children in the future. I thought you'd know."
"Yeah, I know... I heard last night but not the abortion part."
Charlotte's knees felt weak knowing the main reason Alexander invited her for lunch out of the blue.
But why didn't he mention it to her? She was confused. The weight of their words pressed down on her, suffocating her.
"Look," Eleanor continued, "I'm not saying this to be cruel, but maybe this is for the best. Charlotte was never… a good fit for you from the start. Or why didn't she tell you about the pregnancy in the first place?"
Alexander didn't respond immediately. When he finally spoke, his voice was quieter, almost resigned.
"Well, It's over now." He uttered.
Charlotte stood frozen, every word cutting deeper than the last.
She had come to tell him, to bear her pain and vulnerability. But he already knew. He had known since last night and still, he had chosen to end things like this. What a man!
She swallowed the lump in her throat and turned on her heel, her steps silent as she retreated down the hallway.
---
Outside the towering Wallace Enterprises building, the rain was relentless, soaking through her coat and clinging to her skin. But Charlotte didn't care.
The world around her blurred, the chatter of passing strangers muffled as if she were underwater. She kept walking, her tears mingling with the rain until she couldn't tell them apart.
There was nothing left to say. Nothing left to give.
The rain came down in heavy sheets, and Charlotte walked aimlessly in it, her shoes splashing through puddles as if the icy water could drown out the storm inside her.
Her mind churned with fragmented thoughts... memories, regrets, and a crushing emptiness.
She replayed Eleanor's words, Alexander's indifference, the doctor's clinical tone when he'd explained her slim chances of conceiving.
"You can't—," he'd said. The word echoed in her head like a death knell.
'What's the point?'
The question wrapped itself around her thoughts like a noose. She didn't see a future anymore, not one that she wanted.
The rain slightly shut her vision as much as the tears, but she didn't stop.
She reached the crossroad, her feet moving mechanically. The green signal flashed for cars to go, but Charlotte didn't notice.
The blaring horns came first. Sharp, urgent sounds pierced through the rain, but they barely registered in her mind.
A car sped toward her, its headlights slicing through the gray.
"Hey!" a voice shouted.
"Move!" another voice yelled.
But she didn't hear any.
The screech of tires skidding on wet asphalt came next, jolting her out of her trance. She turned her head, seeing the car too close, its momentum unstoppable.
Charlotte froze, her heart jumped out of her chest.
But it didn't hit her. The car swerved just in time, stopping mere inches from where she stood.
The door opened, and a man stepped out. His tall frame loomed over her as he moved quickly through the downpour.
"Miss, are you okay?"
Charlotte blinked up at the man, his voice was firm but laced with concern. He reached out a hand toward her, his face shadowed by the rain.
"Can you hear me?" he asked, his tone softening as he gently grasped her shoulders. "You almost got yourself killed out here!"
Charlotte's lips parted, but no sound came. Her knees buckled as exhaustion, heartbreak, and everything finally consumed her.
"Hey...hey, stay with me!"
But she couldn't.
The last thing she felt was the warmth of his arms catching her before the world went dark...