Capricorn
Chapter 5

Appearance
The typical Capricorn woman:
* has a small and well-shaped body with a slender neck
* has deep, serious eyes
* has an "earthy" beauty
* has a full mouth and very white teeth
* has shapely legs, slim ankles, small feet

*

Both Adena and Taye left Dr. Osbourne's office an hour later, annoyed at each other. Adena was disappointed because Dr. Osbourne wanted them to keep coming back. She was hoping this wouldn't have to be a 'thing.' She was hoping he could give them some pointers, help them to understand each other again. She didn't understand this boy anymore. Every day that passed he wasn't Taye, he was someone else. Someone who didn't care about her. She was stupid to think that this could be a one-and-done thing. Wow, they must really have issues. How long would it take? Would it even help? Were they done for?

They were silent as they rode the elevator down to the lobby. Both of them were reeling from the conversation, well more like a debate. Adena looked at the business card in her hand. This wasn't going to be an easy fix. Nothing ever is. But they had to fix it. Once the doors opened to the lobby, Taye practically pushed his way through and went toward the door. She followed him as fast as she could as she searched in her phone for her Uber. She walked outside and was instantly hit by the cold and brisk air. She paused and shivered as she buttoned up her trench coat. When she looked up, Taye was halfway down the block. Where the hell was he rushing to? He didn't have anything to rush to. He shouldn't anyway.

"Taye!" she called out to him but he kept going. She needed to move anyway or the many people on the sidewalk were going to move her themselves. No standing in the way. "TAYE!" she shouted louder as she followed him quickly. "TAYE!!" she said again and she saw him turn around as well as a few others. Shit. He had her out here looking crazy. When she caught up to him, he was standing close to the bus stop. "We gotta talk about what just happened in there."

"Do we? You made yourself perfectly clear," he said gruffly as he shoved his hands in his pockets to keep them warm. Goddamn, it was cold. He lived here all his life but could never get used to the freezing weather.

"He wants us to come back-"

"No shit," he said as he looked down the street for the bus.

"I think we should come back. If that's going to help, then that's what we got to do."

"Unless Kim has a special arrangement with him, we can't. We're lucky this first consultation was free. We can't afford it. I'm glad we didn't pay him. What are we paying him for? To have a conversation? A big part of it I didn't want to talk about. And for what? I'm not better after that conversation. You're not better obviously. We're not even better. We tried it, and it didn't work. I'm not crazy. We just have more issues than I thought we did, but I'm not the crazy one."

"You keep throwing the word 'crazy' around. You didn't hear him in there? At all? He said it would help to not talk like that."

"Fine whatever synonym you would like to use, go ahead. Knock yourself out."

"I know you don't want to do this, but he's supposedly the best. We're going to be a harder project for him to fix-"

"Project. We would be paying him $130 a session, which is only an hour, for him to work on us as a project. Adena. No."

"You know what I mean! You don't have any ideas!" she said, in exasperation, as she threw her hands up in the air. "Again, I am the one doing all the work-"

"Here we go-"

"- fixing this. All you have come up with was sorry. Sorry isn't going to cut it," she said. "Come up with something better or-"

"Shut up?" he finished for her.

She sighed. Yeah, but she knew not to say that to him right now.

"Well, what the fuck are you asking me for, Adena? If it's your way. Always. What point is it for me to tell you what I want when it's never enough for you?"

Adena paused as she looked around. This was New York. This was Brooklyn. Heated arguments happened all the time in public. She wasn't one of those people though. Her pocket vibrated and then three text messages came up...now four.

"Lemme guess, it's our fairy godmother?"Taye asked sarcastically.

"I told her I would be back by 1 and it's 1:30, "Adena sighed.

Donatella
Adena? It's 1:30.
You told me you would be back in an hour.
Call me back ASAP.

Shit. She was never late. There goes her perfect attendance. But she had to choose between her marriage and her career, and she felt herself being pulled in both directions. She couldn't be in two places at once. What made it worse was that her Uber canceled on her too. They waited long enough for her and left. She looked at the map and searched for the closest Uber nearby. She then heard loud brakes and saw the bus pull up. The doors opened and a big group of people filed out. Taye moved up so he could get in line. But he couldn't leave now. Their conversation wasn't over. But she couldn't stay either. She anxiously tried to think of what to do. Taye or Donatella? Taye or Donatella? She made this choice a lot, and usually, Donatella won because well, she's the reason why they aren't homeless. Especially now. Taye was the last person in line. He ascended the stairs and swiped his bus card. She jumped on after him. "Excuse me, do you go near Soho?" she asked the driver.

"What part?" the driver asked her.

"The Art District, Donatella's-"

"I have no clue what you're talking about, lady," the driver said with a dull expression. She could feel the whole bus staring at her, waiting for her; she was holding them up.

She sighed and swiped her card and walked down the aisle as the bus doors closed behind her. She saw Taye sitting in the back near the back door of the bus. She went to him quickly as the bus jerked to a start and pulled away from the curb. She sat next to him. He had his headphones in but said, "This line doesn't go to where you gotta go, Dena. You're gonna have to do a lot of walking-"

"I'm gonna have to do a lot of everything. All the time. That's what I do. Everything. Everything for everyone else, I rush and work hard and come up with all the ideas and help them out. But if I need just a little bit of slack, a little bit of help, it's a hassle. I'll figure it out. I always have to, "she huffed.

Taye looked at her and sighed. She was kind of right. He's even told her this...but only when it came to Donatella needing her to do things that weren't in her job title and above her pay grade. He looked down and saw her playing with her fingernails. On autopilot, he reached out and held her hand in his. When she did that, that meant she wasn't ok. She was nervous, triggered, and stressed. All of the above. When she did that, he always held her shaking hands in his to calm her down.

Adena was shocked at what was happening right now. There he was. The Taye she knew. Helping her, protecting her, touching her, and keeping her secure when she needed it most. She held his hand in hers a little tighter. Though his hands were freezing cold, she felt a spark. The spark she felt every time he touched her. Ever since they met...

5 years ago...

Kim, Adena, and Missy laughed, danced, and put the last finishing touches on their costumes. Their first week of classes at Columbia was finished. It was a lot more work than they thought. But it was Friday night, and it was time to take advantage of the privileges they had now. They were 18. Grown. Out of their parent's house and from under their thumbs. It was time to celebrate, party, and meet new people. The three of them were lucky that they all hit it off immediately. They were afraid their first roommates would be nightmares. However, they each were the sister that they never had. Adena was an only child, and she always yearned for a sibling, especially a sister. Kim had two other siblings. Twins. They both were girls, but they were 10 years younger than she was. They looked at her like another parent since both of their parents worked nonstop. Missy was the middle child of 5 boys.

I know right? So let's just say they immediately filled a void they each had.

One of the most popular fraternities, Alpha Phi Alpha, was holding their annual 'Back To School' party. They always had themes, the best munchies, the best drinks, and the best music, and supposedly they were one of the fraternities with the hottest black guys. Besides their rival, the Kappas. So Kim and Missy had to be there. Adena didn't care, really. She actually had a couple of boyfriends that were White, but that was puppy love. She was currently dating her first love from high school, Damon. Black. However, she didn't get into Yale like she wanted as they had planned. They were supposed to go together. They talked about her working really hard so she could transfer to him. However, they barely talked. Both were busy exploring college life. Adena wasn't much of a partier, but Missy and Kim made her want to be social. Missy made anything sound fun, and Kim was able to make friends instantly wherever they went. This was the first party she didn't feel she was being dragged to.

She was actually really excited. This year's party theme was 'The 90s'. Her favorite era. She was kind of an old soul. She wished she was old enough to have gone to college in the 90s. She loved the teen movies from the '90s, the r&b boy and girl groups, the boy bands and the pop stars, even the grunge bands, gangster rap, and outspoken female rappers. She grew up on all the popular tv shows, the fashions, the celebrities. You get my drift. When she found out it was a 90's theme, she couldn't miss it, and she begged Kim and Missy to go as her favorite girl group, TLC. Her favorite song was 'Creep,' and she said they had to wear the cute silky pajamas the girls wore in the video. New York City was full of costume and thrift shops, and they lucked out and found the perfect costumes. Kim was T-Boz and wore blue. Missy had to be Left Eye; she wouldn't have it any other way and wore red, which was fine. Adena was glad she didn't have to fight over who would be Chilli, her favorite out of the group. She smiled as she looked at herself in the hot pink pajamas in the mirror as Missy helped put her hair in two high ponytails, exactly like Chilli did.

"This isn't too loud, right?" Adena asked. Pink wasn't really her color, especially hot pink.

"Girl, you look good," Kim said as she adjusted her blonde wig.

"And if you get lost, you'll be easy to find," Missy said.

"Yeah, I feel like I'm gonna glow in the dark," she said. She couldn't be lowkey as usual if she stood out like that.

"Go ahead, girl, stunt on these hoes," Missy said as she finished her hair. "You look so cute. Doesn't she?" she asked Kim.

"You do. This was a great idea," Kim said with a smile. "I think I may dye my hair blonde," she said as she played with her wig.

"We all look good," Adena agreed.

"Ok, let's go it's almost 11:30," Kim said.

"That's still early," Missy said.

"Yeah, if you don't wanna find a guy tonight. By the time we get to the frat house, it's gonna be midnight, and all the cute ones will be taken."

"Not til they see us," Missy bragged, "And with Miss Hot Pink here, they won't miss us."

"True," Kim said as Adena rolled her eyes. That's the opposite of what she wanted. She should have gone for the grey pajamas Chilli also wore, but she couldn't find that color anywhere. "Ok, let's pregame, and let's fucking GO!" she said as she picked up a bottle of Watermelon Ciroc vodka. "Shots!"

"Shots! Shots! Shots!"Missy chanted as Kim poured the vodka into small paper dixie cups. She picked one up immediately and gave it to Adena.

"You guys-"

"Girl, don't right now; we're trying to have a good time," Missy said to her. Kim laughed in agreement. They were in shock when Adena said she didn't like to drink and only drank once. At senior prom earlier that year, the punch was spiked, and Adena didn't figure that out until she was vomiting in the bathroom. Senior prom would have been a lot better if that didn't happen. She felt guilty that Damon had to drop her home as soon as prom was over and sneak her into her bedroom so her parents wouldn't find out she had been drinking.

She didn't want to repeat that night at her first college party. That was embarrassing enough.

"Just pace yourself, girl. Don't overdose on any punch tonight, ok? One shot won't kill you," Kim said.

"The more you drink now, the less you'll need to drink when we get there; you'll be feeling too good," Missy added.

Adena groaned, "UHHHH Fine!" she said as she held her shot in the air. "To college," she said.

"TO COLLEGE!" they toasted. On the way to the frat house, they got compliments on the way there. It took them a little longer to get there because Kim kept seeing people she knew and made sure to introduce them to Adena. Missy gave out her Instagram name to every guy that looked at her twice. "Come on," she said to them as she fanned herself. She was hot, the shot didn't help, and sweat on silk wasn't attractive at all. She was also a little frustrated. Damon was completely silent. He hadn't called her back or answered any texts; he even didn't like any of the group pictures she posted on Snapchat and Instagram.

"Ok, bye, cutie. Come to the Alpha house later and find me," Missy flirted.

The guy smiled at her. "Yeah, I'll do that," he said as he looked her up and down. He looked at the three of them. "Ya'll gonna win that contest, I bet. Ya'll fine."

"What contest?"Missy asked.

"The Alphas always have costume contests. The grand prize is usually like $300"

"WHAT!?" they asked excitedly.

"You'll see when you'll get there."

The girls rushed to the house in excitement. Adena smiled as they approached the house. It looked exactly like the frat houses in her favorite teen movies, 'Can't Hardly Wait' and 'She's All That.' She always wanted to go to one. In the front yard, a slip-and-slide was set up, and a group of girls in Baywatch bikinis was sliding across as a group of guys looked on.

"Eww look at them hoes," Missy said with a laugh as they walked past. Adena covered her mouth as she laughed. One of the girls got up, and her tit flopped out, and everyone around her cheered as she covered herself up in shock. "See? Titties out and shit."

They walked toward the porch, which was filled with people in costumes drinking, doing keg stands, smoking blunts, laughing, and dancing. It was awesome. "Hey, I thought you went inside already," a drunk guy said to them.

"What?" they asked and laughed as they walked in. The house was packed. It might as well be a club. The DJ scratched, and then "Big Poppa" by Biggie came on. "Yaass, my shit!" Missy said with a smile as she danced in the doorway.

"Girls, come on, let's make our rounds," Kim said as she pulled Missy to the left, and they walked into the living room/library. People were playing pool, dancing, drinking, and smoking. Then the three of them stopped in their tracks.

Across the room, gathered around a baby grand piano, were three girls dressed as TLC, and not only that, but they had the same exact costumes on! "WHAT THE FUCK" Missy said in shock. The three girls noticed them, looked them up and down, laughed and whispered to each other, and walked out. They all could have been identical except for Adena and the other Chilli. Thankfully the other Chilli was wearing the grey pajamas she wanted. Where did she find those?!?! "Great, there goes our $300"

"Let's keep going," Kim said as they walked into the kitchen, where people were eating, taking shots, dancing, and mingling. Their mood went down by a lot, and Adena frowned as Missy handed her a red cup.

"Wait, what's in this?" she asked.

"They said it's Jungle Juice-"

"What's in that?!"

"Girl, chill; it's sweet, just like you like it. It's good, too," Missy said. Adena sighed and took a big sip. Yeah, but it was strong too. "Just pace yourself," Missy said. "Oooooh, wings," Missy said as she made herself a plate. Adena ended up eating most of them because soon Kim and Missy were in deep conversations with people. She didn't know anyone but them.

Then, the DJ put on, guess what. Creep.

"Let's go! Let's go!"Kim said as she took the plate out of Adena's hand and pulled them towards the entertainment room where the DJ was, "Those bitches may look like us, but they ain't gonna move like us," she said. They practiced a routine in the room as they watched the music video on Youtube. They ran into the room, and Kim pushed their way to the front. "Let's do it!" she said to them. Adena nodded with wide eyes as they got on the small makeshift stage the DJ was on. "5...6...7...8..."

The DJ rolled his eyes. If people wanted to get onstage, they had to go to the backyard where the karaoke contest was going on. He was sick of telling people to get down. He picked up his mic, but then the girls started to dance. He paused and watched them. Wow. They were all cute, but the girl dressed as Chilli in hot pink caught his eye first. She knew how to move too. "Awwww shiiiiiittt, we got TLC in the house," he said, hyping up the crowd. They all cheered them on as they did their routine. Missy noticed the other TLC in the back of the room, and they didn't look happy. Welp, it sucks to suck.

Adena usually didn't like being the center of attention, but dancing was an exception. She felt the most comfortable doing that. She's been dancing since she could walk. The drinks and the Jack Daniel's Wings also helped too. The crowd loved them too. Cool. The DJ cheered them on, and she winked at him. He wasn't dressed as anybody as far as she knew. He was wearing all black and had black shades on. He played the whole song for them. "TLC, ya'll!" he said as the crowd cheered. Adena blushed; she was as pink as her costume. The three of them cheered and bowed. Kim and Missy jumped down off the stage and were immediately greeted by people they knew. Adena hopped down or tried to, but she lost her footing, and she felt herself falling.

Shit!

"Whoa! I got you," someone said as they caught her in their arms. She held onto him tightly and smiled shyly. "You ok?" All she could do was nod. He was fine. Normally she would feel guilty for crushing on a stranger, but nothing mattered right now. She felt herself getting hot. She looked into his dark brown eyes and smiled back at him. He had a great smile and perfectly white teeth. That was a turn-on. "You almost hurt yourself there, Chilli. I'm glad I was here to catch you in time. Couldn't have my favorite TLC member hurt."

"Thanks," she said. She looked down at his outfit. She didn't know how she missed him and didn't see him until now. He was wearing a neon green t-shirt, matching shorts, and a matching backwards cap. "Fresh Prince?" she asked.

"West Philidelphia, born and raised," he quoted and smiled at her. She blushed and smiled back. "What's your real name, though, Chilli?"

"Adena," she said.

"Adena?" he repeated, and she nodded. He could barely hear her over the speakers and the crowd. She was so quiet but so damn cute. He couldn't stop staring at her. He noticed her first when he was out on the porch but then lost her as soon as he saw her. Now here she was. She said something else, but he couldn't hear. "What?"

"You? What's your name?"

"Dontaye, but just call me Taye," he said. "Nice to meet you, Adena" he smiled at her. "Adena," he repeated so he wouldn't forget. "Adena. Adena..."

"Adena," Taye nudged her, and she was transported back to the present. She was no longer having the time of her life in Taye's arms, no longer in college. It was back to reality. Their new reality.

"What?"

"You should get off at this next stop, I think it's the closest you'll get to work."

"Oh ok," she said, and he reached up and pulled on the yellow cord to let the driver know to stop. She looked out the window. She knew where she was now, but she knew she was going to be really late now. It was going to be quite a walk. The bus pulled over to the curb and slowed to a stop. She stood up.

"Hey..." he started to say.

"I'll see you later," she said hurriedly and stepped off as soon as the doors opened. He sighed as he watched her walk down the street quickly. Texting as she did. He watched her walk until he couldn't anymore. He turned his music on and tried to ignore the weird sinking feeling that came over him.

*

At their very worst, Capricorns may use a friend to further an ambition without a word of thanks...

*

Adena didn't get back to work until 2 pm. Donatella wasn't happy. She may say she's her favorite employee, but being late made her fall from the pedestal they both put her on. She was human, and she made mistakes like everyone else. Donatella didn't care. She hated mistakes, and she hated excuses even more. All she could do was apologize profusely and work her ass off for the rest of the day, even though she walked around like a dog with its tail in between its legs. The moment she and Taye had on the bus inspired her again, and reminiscing over how they met reminded her not to give up. She still loved him and always will; the same spark she felt from years ago proved it. All she wanted to do was leave and go back to him.

But she didn't get home until after 7 that evening, like any other night. Today seemed longer somehow. She also had a hell of a headache. She sighed as she closed the door behind her. She paused. She then opened the door again. No creaking sound. Did he finally fix it? She shut the door again and locked it behind her. She put her purse on the table in their small foyer and took off her coat and gloves. She paused again when she realized she smelled something. She practically tossed the coat on the hook and walked toward the smell. She walked into the kitchen, and her eyes widened when she saw Taye standing at the stove. Cooking.

Was this the Twilight Zone? Or a dream?

"Hi," she said, and he turned around. He took his headphones out of his ears.

"I thought I heard something," he said.

"The door doesn't squeak anymore, I see; it's easier to sneak in," she said. "Thank you."

"Yeah...well, I was craving my favorite, so..." he said as he picked up a plate. She smiled, and her mouth began to water. He made his signature garlic bread grilled cheese sandwich with bacon. She sighed with relief. If she had to eat pizza again or cook herself, she might have just gone to bed hungry. He put the plate on the table. "I, um, couldn't wait to eat," he said sheepishly.

"It's ok. It's late," she said. "Um, I'm gonna..." and then she nodded her head to their bedroom. He said ok, and she walked to their room in disbelief. Her heart stopped when she walked in. The room was completely clean. Just like she liked it, he didn't do any shortcuts, she could tell; he practically deep-cleaned the room. She walked into the bathroom and smiled. Spotless. She sighed with relief. Taye was back. The caring guy that saved her from possibly spraining her ankle and embarrassing herself at her first college party. The guy who didn't mind taking care of things and didn't complain when he had to. The guy who stayed home and made it comfy and inviting instead of wasting time playing video games.

Maybe therapy helped after all.

She put her purse on her dresser and changed out of her business casual. She put on an old Tommy Hilfiger sweatshirt and some basketball shorts. She slipped her feet into her favorite slipper socks and put her hair up in a messy but not too messy bun. She took her phone out of her purse and had texts from Kim and Missy asking for updates, work emails, and other notifications. She couldn't be bothered right now. She plugged the charger into her phone and left it in the bedroom.

She walked back into the kitchen to see Taye doing the dishes. What was going on? Her birthday wasn't for another couple of weeks. It wasn't their anniversary or anything. Did he have good news? Did he get a job offer? She sat down at the table and bit into the sandwich. She savored every bite and washed it down with some Vitamin Water. "How was the rest of your day?" she asked. "Anything exciting?"

"Besides therapy?" he quipped. She said nothing; she didn't know how to respond to that. "Nope, it was the same old same old."

"Oh, you've been here this whole time?"

"Yeah, after doing a couple of errands, I've been here all day."

No job, then. But she was still relieved. She was afraid that she would come home to an empty apartment again. She was afraid he would stay out late out of spite. "Ok," she replied. She practically swallowed the rest of the sandwich down. She just realized she didn't have any lunch today. Between therapy and being late, she couldn't walk in with a bag of takeout. She hadn't eaten since the granola bar and Starbucks she had this morning and the small random snacks at her desk, which explained the headache.

And as if on cue, she closed her eyes as she rubbed her temples in pain. She hoped it wasn't a migraine. "You alright?" he asked her.

"My head is killing me," she said.

"Like you got a fever?" he asked her. There was a bug going around. Flu season was here.

"No. Just pain. A lot of pain," she said.

"Go lay down," he said. "You been working all day. Did you eat?" he asked her, and she shook her head. He figured as much. When she was stressed, she forgot to eat. When she was busy, she forgot to eat. When she works for Donatella, she forgets to eat. She was all the above, most likely. Today was a day for both of them. So many emotions in just 12 hours. "You wanna bath? A shower?" he asked her.

She shook her head; as soon as he suggested for her to lie down, her body was in agreement so much that she felt all her energy get sucked out of her. "I'm just gonna..." she said and walked out.

He sighed and cleaned up her plate and the rest of the kitchen. When he was done, he looked at his phone and saw texts from everyone asking if he was going out with them tonight. Not tonight. He wasn't in the mood anymore. He walked into their bedroom, and Adena had just finished washing her makeup off. She skipped her moisturizing routine and wrapped her hair for bed, and just got right in. She sighed happily. Laying down in a freshly made bed was underrated. "You need something?" he asked her.

"I took Tylenol," she said as she lay there, getting comfortable.

"Well, lemme let you rest," he said as he picked up a few sheets and a pillow near the door.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm gonna sleep on the couch."

She sat up. No. She was sick of the distance. She was so sick of it because she was starting to get used to it. It seemed like ages since they went to bed together and at the same time. "No, stay."

Taye hesitated. He didn't think it was a good idea. He didn't want to stress her out any more than he already had. He needed to just let her be. "It's ok. I think it's better this way." They were both thinking about the moment they had on the bus and didn't know what to do. For some reason, he felt extremely guilty. As he cleaned and cooked all day, he had a long time to think about what was happening with them, his infidelity, her distrust and anger, and their marriage. He was stressed too. He didn't know how it was going to turn out. He had no clue, and that scared him. He looked back at her and wished he didn't. She looked so sad, lonely, and hurt. Her lips trembled, and before he knew it, she started to cry. Fuck.

This was all his fault. That's why he should let her be.

"Just please stay. Please?" she cried, tears streaming down her face, her large brown eyes begging him to listen.

His guilt forced him to put the sheets and pillows back. It was the least he could do. He walked over and got in bed next to her. She put her head in her hands and cried. Fuck. He was such an asshole. He was a piece of scum. He didn't deserve her. He never did, really, but she believed in him and loved him, and he loved her. "Adena...here...come on," he said as he wrapped his arms around her. Her shaking little body fell into his arms and snuggled close to him. He held her close and rocked her as she cried. "I'm...I'm sorry," he said. He truly was, in more ways than one. "Shhhh."

Adena held him close; she smelled his cologne and felt his strong, muscular arms holding her tight. She missed this. She missed this so much. But she was so confused. One minute everything seemed hopeless, and the next, she felt guilty for wanting to give up on them. She shouldn't be doing this at all. He should be sleeping on the couch. He's been a dick to her all day. All week...for a while now. Just because he finally did what she had been begging him to do didn't mean that everything was ok. But she also wished that it was. She was tired of fighting. She was tired of crying. She was tired of being tired. Here she was, crying in the arms of the person who was making her cry like this in the first place.

"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I'm so sorry..." he repeated over and over as he held her close. She couldn't let go of him. She didn't want to let go of him.

He didn't know how long he held her as she cried, but soon her crying turned into little sniffles and sighs. Then he felt her body get heavy and limp. She fell asleep. He laid her down gently and tucked her in. He watched as she slept some. What was wrong with him? She looked like Sleeping Beauty right now. Why was he sabotaging something so great? Someone so beautiful? How did he forget how lucky he was? What happened to being so proud to be her husband? Being proud HE was the one she chose when she could have ANY guy in this world. He's gotten into fights and also almost got into a lot of fights at the same time over her to protect her from the guys trying to take her away from him. It was like everyone knew he didn't deserve her and challenged him for her. The only person who didn't know was her.

Until now, she was probably starting to. She had to be. He had to let her be. He had to stop hurting her. He looked at the sheets and pillows across the room and almost got up and slept on the couch anyway. But he didn't want her to wake up upset that he wasn't still next to her, holding her; he didn't want to be away from her when she was in literal physical pain. Though she said she didn't eat, he knew he was the cause of her headache. Her tears. His guilt. He sighed and took off his sweats. It was early. He hasn't gone to bed this early in a while. But he was starting to feel pretty tired too.

He picked up his phone and glanced at the many messages he had. They could wait. They all could wait. He had something more important to do tonight. He turned his phone off completely and turned off the light. He got into bed, settled under the covers, wrapped his arms around her, and held her close as she slept. Her body felt really warm, and he didn't know if it was her normal temperature or because of the headache. He pulled the covers back some to give her some air. He got into his usual big spoon position and held her close.

He sighed. He was exhausted, but he was up practically all night trying to figure out what to do.

What were they going to do? What was he going to do?

*

If a Capricorn suspects a friend of deception, he or she will start to suspect all friends.

*

https://youtu.be/KCHgxoXv4g4