Sharon's life immediately changed the moment she stepped into the office. Matt had been informed of her decision the minute after she spoke to Cameron about it. He was so pleased about her capitulation that he gave her her walking orders that very night She had been overwhelmed about the call but one smile from Cameron and calmness returned.

Remembering the moment fondly, she hurried down across the office to reach her mentor. The person looking after her training and education in all things sports. Or football, in this case. That made sense seeing as her first client was a football player. Feeling like her head was about to explode, she braced herself for more information overload.

That was the way her days progressed since. To get her up to speed, every day was a constant loop of reading, historical data analysis and a test. Over and over and over again. Every single day. Every. Single. Day.

And by the end of the day, her brain was so fried that she could barely walk. It was a struggle to put one foot in front of the other. She was eternally grateful that Cameron still picked her up from work. If she had to go back via the subway, there was no way she could stay sane.

But today, her sanity, barely kept in check as it was, was reaching its breaking point. She had been drilled with so much information that the sky looked like the ground and her own sense of identity almost flowed out with all the information in her brain. Getting to the car, she nearly forgot how to open the door, staring at the handle for a few seconds.

"Are you alright?"Cameron asked, his voice rife with concern and worry. Smiling faintly at him, she nodded. How could she tell him she was barely keeping it together? Near bursting at the seams, it felt like everything from today would gush forth with one wrong move. Closing her eyes, she settled down for the car ride back when Cameron cleared his throat. "Ah, you know, about the appointment-"

"Oh yeah,"she said, recalling his physical therapist appointment was this afternoon. She hadn't been able to get away then but he had promised her he would go. And although Matt had been sceptical, she had trusted him. Thankfully, he hadn't proven her wrong. "How did it go?"

"It was good,"he said brightly, weaving in and out of traffic. "The firm you chose was very good. They have a therapist that was great at her job."

"That's great." She was glad. He had been dragging his feet since before she came into the picture. Since he was so enthused about it after one session, he wouldn't be so difficult anymore- "What do you mean her? I chose a guy for you."

"Oh, right." Sweat was dripping down her back. She had a bad feeling about this. "I guess Matt didn't tell you. That guy had something on today, I guess he was double-booked or something, and wasn't able for the session. So I was assigned one of the junior staff as a replacement for today. But, I have to tell you, she was good. I haven't felt this good since I was in my teens. And she was easy to talk to, too. I can talk to her about anything."

"That's great,"she responded softly. It was taking all of her will not to demand- ask- more questions about that woman. He sounded so happy that she didn't have the heart to say anything against her.

"So, ah, this brings me to the next issue. Dinner."

"Yeah. I'm looking forward to dinner right now,"she said, jumping onto the topic. Anything to stop whatever he was going to say next. She knew it was not something she wanted to hear. "It's some pork chops, right? I can't wait for some home-cooked food. You didn't switch off the power again, did you-"

"Sharon, I'm going out for a date tonight. With her. Right after dropping you off, I mean." She immediately faced the window. Tears were fast filling her eyes and she didn't want him to see. She had to keep some dignity for herself. An awkward silence filled the car. "I know what you're going to say. She's my therapist and I shouldn't mix work and pleasure. But she's only filling in for today. Just today. The usual guy is going to be back the next time. So, um-"

"Cameron, I'm sure you know what you're doing,"she said, finally managing to compose herself. The throbbing in her heart still remained but the tears were kept at bay. "You can just drop me there. I know the apartment is just around the corner but the lobby isn't the most convenient place to stop."

"It's alright. I can send you straight back-"

"And I'm telling you that that is perfectly fine,"she snapped. Realising her mask was cracking, she took a deep breath. Keep it together, Sharon. Just a few more minutes.

"Are you sure you're alright? Is work getting too hard for you? I knew it. Let me call Holly and we'll reschedule-"

"Don't do that,"she cried, half in panic. As happy as she was that he was willing to cancel his date for her, she couldn't let him do that. She needed the time alone. Just to be alone. "As a woman, I'm insulted you're going to let a trifle matter get between you and your date. Now, just drop me off here. You're going to be late. It looks like it's going to rain and we both know how bad traffic gets."

"Alright." He slowed the car and stopped right before the bend. As she was getting ready to go out, his hand on her arm stopped her briefly. "I won't be back tonight. Just so you know. In case you hear any strange noise and think it was me."

"I'm going to fine, Cameron. Enjoy your date." Getting off the car, she held her bag close and walked off.

Ignoring his honk of goodbye and the tears dripping down her cheeks.

------@@@@------

Getting out of the bathroom, Sharon's limbs felt heavy and her body didn't want to move. But this was not the languidness of a good bath. Passing by the vanity, she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and wrinkled her nose in aversion.

Her eyes and nose were red and swollen, her wet hair was like strands of noodles around her face and her body was bulging from all the excess weight. Was it any wonder that Cameron wanted someone else? He was a nice guy. The nicest she had ever met but that didn't mean he didn't have his own life. It was good enough that he had stayed long enough to make sure she was settled into the new job. Of course, he wouldn't stay around. Especially with a more attractive specimen around.

Turning sharply away when she saw tears welling up again, she told herself to forget about him and focus on herself. She had a new job to catch up on. There was no time for anything, anyone, else in her mind. Sniffing loudly and deeply, as if sucking in all the air in the room, she nodded decisively and went to dress herself. She had no time for this.

Grabbing her reading material and dinner, she settled herself into the sofa, her papers and bowl beside her, and switched on the television. She had to get on with her work, getting absorbed into the material. So much so that her dinner was getting cold. The television was just on for background noise. She worked better with some noise. So the next hour or so was divided between eating and reading. More reading than eating because she couldn't multitask to save her life.

Suddenly the doorbell rang. For a brief moment, she perked up, thinking it was Cameron. But she felt herself physically deflating when she realised he wouldn't ring the bell. He had his own set of keys. Of course.

Stop that, Sharon!

Seeing as this was an unexpected guest, she slowly got to her feet and trudged to the door. All the while wondering who could be coming at such a late hour. Hearing a familiar voice through the door, her pace quickened. Her hands reached out to swing the door open without her realising it. And the first genuine smile of the night appeared on her face.

------@@@@------

Placing the bowl of stew on the island, she smiled when Logan immediately wolfed it down. Warmed by his gusto, she also joined him and finished the rest of her dinner. Her mood was much lighter than just minutes earlier. It was hard to believe that the appearance of one person could make the night for her.

She had been feeling glum and dejected the entire night even though distracted with work. There was a faint but constant throbbing in her chest that hurt and it had taken all of her effort to ignore it. But now, she couldn't feel anything. Everything was fine.

"So where's Cameron?"he asked around a mouthful of meat. And there came the throbbing again. This time, it doubled in intensity. Her eyes were filling up again. Turning away, she put down her bowl and pretended to wipe the counter.

"He's on a date,"she said, hoping her voice sounded normal.

"A date? With who? Matt?" Letting out a small breath of relief, she was glad he hadn't caught on. He sounded oblivious.

"What?" But she had to admit to some confusion. How did he go from date to one with Matt? Unless he knew something she didn't? Getting back to the conversation, she braced herself for his reaction. "No. A woman. His new physical therapist. Or substitute therapist."

"A woman?!" Now he sounded incredulous. Some of the stew spewed on the island. Well, she no longer had to pretend; she really had to wipe. "What? Is he cheating on you? Or do you have an open relationship?"

"What are you talking about? He and I are not dating. Like never. He just happened to be hiding away here when I came to town. That's all." It was getting more difficult to speak. She hadn't realised how tenuous the bond between them was. And with all that, she couldn't believe the strength of her feelings for him.

They had just gotten to know about each other. She'd admit that he was an attractive man. The way he moved, the way he smiled, the way he talked, the way he looked, she was attracted to all of that. But she, who had come here to lick her wounds, thought her heart was immune to all that. So it had been a shock to realise she loved him.

Even now, she asked herself how? When? Wasn't this just a rebound? Then why did it hurt so much? Feeling a sob wending its way up her body, her hand came over her mouth, coughing slightly to cover the movement.

"Ah, Sharon,"Logan said softly, putting down his bowl. She didn't look at him. From his tone, it was clear he was aware of the situation. "I can talk to him-"

"No!" Turning sharply to look at him, she couldn't help it when her lips began to tremble. The sympathy in his eyes almost broke her. But she didn't want to cry anymore. Shaking her head empathetically when his mouth opened again, she took a deep breath. Hoping all the tears and mucus would disappear. "So, ah tell me about what you've been doing."

"Sharon, you don't have to keep it in-"

"You know, I've been up to my neck with learning about the sport and industry that I wasn't able to get any update about you." She had to interrupt him. There was no way she wanted to talk about him now. Or ever.

"Look, it's not healthy. I'm here if you need me-"

"I appreciate that,"she said loudly, nearly shouting. But she was nearing the ends of her tethers. "But, right now, right this moment, let's talk about you. Let's."

Their eyes connected, she was imploring him to drop the subject. Please. Not tonight.

She knew he got the message when he took up his bowl again.

"So nothing much has changed. My lawyer is liaising with the new guy, making sure the contract is alright and fair to both parties-"

-----@@@-----

True to his words, Cameron didn't return that night. Sharon hadn't realised how much she wanted their date to fail. Feeling as if an arrow had pierced her heart, at such an early as well, was debilitating. Sharon wanted to call in sick but what was she going to do all day? With only crying being foreseen in the near future, she decided to get ready

Commuting via the subway wasn't the best way to start the morning. But it was only for this morning.

Just for this morning.

AN: Hey guys. How's it going? What do you think about the chapter? Are you shocked? I'm shocked. And I have no idea why. But do you know those moments when an idea strikes you at the least expected moment? Yeah, that was how I was. Especially since this wasn't a route I even thought of before. But it fit the story so much that I was wondering why I didn't think about this earlier. So yeah. I was mindblown. Still am.

Moving on, I hope you guys check out the FREE one shots on my ko-fi. They're exclusively there, and on my blog, for the moment. Just go to ko-fi.com/saiyidah.

Anyways, please VOTE and COMMENT if you liked the chapter.

THANKS!