Bella had already been up for a while, her hair slightly tousled as she flipped a pancake onto a plate. Rachel sat at the counter, swinging her legs and drawing little hearts in the condensation on her glass of milk.
The clatter of a door made Bella glance up.
Lucas walked out of the bedroom, hair still damp from a quick shower, one sleeve rolled and the other hanging loose, as he wrestled with his shirt buttons while checking something on his phone.
"You're late," Bella said casually, sliding a pancake onto Rachel's plate and taking a toast for herself.
"I know," he muttered, voice still thick with sleep. "I overslept. Damn it—where's my tie?"
Bella pointed to the back of a chair with the edge of her spatula. "There."
Lucas grabbed it and slung it around his neck, trying to loop it with one hand while scrolling through his inbox with the other. Bella watched his fumble for a second, amused.
"You're going to strangle yourself," she said, lips twitching.
"I can manage," he muttered.
She didn't say anything more. Instead, she popped that piece of toast between her lips, walked over to him, and took the tie from his hands without asking.
Lucas looked at her, caught off guard as she stood in front of him. She had a piece of toast in her mouth, the edge sticking out as she stood on her tiptoes to adjust the knot on his tie. Her hair was left open—soft waves tumbling past her shoulders—just the way he liked it. She wore one of her oversized T-shirts, paired with tiny cotton shorts that peeked out just beneath the hem. The shirt hung loosely over one shoulder, revealing the delicate line of her collarbone.
Lucas's gaze dropped for a moment, and he exhaled quietly.
This wasn't intentional, he was sure. She wasn't trying to make his heart skip a beat—but God, she did. Without a second thought, his hands found her waist, fingers settling there with a firm but gentle grip. Maybe to steady her… maybe to ground himself.
Bella paused briefly, blinking at the sudden contact, the toast still between her lips.
"You're distracting," she mumbled, voice muffled.
He smirked. "So are you."
Her fingers faltered for just a second, and he took the opportunity to pull her slightly closer. She didn't resist—if anything, she seemed to forget what she was doing for a moment.
Rachel's voice cut through the growing silence. "Ewww, are you two being lovey-dovey again?"
Bella flushed and quickly stepped back, finishing the knot on Lucas's tie in record time. "There. Done."
Lucas chuckled under his breath, brushing a thumb over her wrist before moving to grab his suit jacket.
Rachel, unfazed, continued munching her pancake. "You guys are weird."
"We're adults," Bella replied, nudging her gently. "We get to be weird."
Lucas smirked again, catching Bella's eyes briefly before heading to the door. "I'll text when I reach."
Bella nodded, watching him leave—her fingertips still tingling where he'd touched her. She wasn't sure what got to her more: the tie, the casual intimacy… or the fact that his hand had felt like it belonged there.
And despite the toast still stuck between her teeth, she was smiling.
******
Bella sat cross-legged on the couch, her laptop balanced on her thighs, eyes scanning through her inbox. The soft clinking of spoons from the sink, the smell of morning lingering on freshly wiped counters, the quiet hum of the ceiling fan — it all felt too still today.
A little earlier, she had texted Lucas as he didn't texted her if he reached his office. Something she wasn't exactly in the habit of doing.
"Did you reach office safely?"
No emojis, no overthinking. But the moment she hit send, she stared at the screen like a lovesick teenager, scoffing at herself. 'What's wrong with me today?' she had wondered.
He'd replied simply:"I did. You okay?"
It shouldn't have meant much. But it did. His simple "you okay?" nestled somewhere in her chest and stayed there.
She shook her head and got back to the email that now sat open before her.
The HR rep from the company she applied to had responded: "Unfortunately, the current role we're hiring for requires frequent late-night sessions and travel. While your skills are impressive, we are only considering unmarried applicants at this time."
Bella blinked at the message, reading it again — unmarried applicants.
She sighed and moved on to another email, from a different company.
It read: "While we appreciate your application, we are currently not hiring individuals in advanced stages of pregnancy due to the temporary nature of the contract."
Her fingers hovered over the keyboard, then dropped. Disappointment flooded her chest like a slow, cold tide.
The ringtone startled her.
"Lucas," she whispered before answering.
"Hey," his voice crackled lightly on the other end. "Just checking in. Everything good?"
Bella hesitated. She could lie and say yes. But something in his voice told her he'd hear it anyway.
"I just got a couple of responses. They don't want me." She tried to chuckle, to keep it light. "Apparently being married or pregnant is a liability."
Lucas was silent for a beat.
"Bella," he finally said, voice low but strong, "it's not a reflection of your worth. Some doors close because better ones are meant to open. You're brilliant, and someone's going to see that — not just despite who you are but because of it."
Her heart squeezed.
"Thanks," she murmured. "That helps… more than you know."
"I'll be back soon. Just don't let emails written by strangers shake you, okay?"
She nodded. "I'll try."
They hung up.
Bella got up to freshen herself. A quick bath, some lazy cleaning — wiping down counters, folding Rachel's tiny socks, airing the bedroom curtains. But nothing cleared her head quite like painting.
She laid out her canvas and paints, letting the silence guide her.
Her brush moved in slow, thoughtful strokes — a curve of a cheek, the shadow of a strong jawline, dark eyes that held more than they revealed. She didn't realize what she was creating until she stepped back to look at the nearly completed figure.
Tall. Broad shoulders. Sharp eyes. That slight tilt of the head, like he's listening to more than you're saying.
It was Lucas.
She blinked, genuinely surprised.
She hadn't meant to paint him.
And yet, there he was — a quiet shadow of the man who was now, inexplicably, part of her thoughts even in his absence.
Bella exhaled, smiling softly to herself.
"Looks like you're everywhere even when you're not," she whispered.