Today was Monday. Another long, draining Monday that felt heavier than the last.
The day had already slipped past evening when Athena left the lab, exhaustion clinging to her like a second skin.
She had gone to work that morning as usual, spent hours reviewing data and patient charts, ensuring the new cure protocol was holding steady. But instead of driving home, to her grandparents and children, she'd returned to Antonio's house because she needed to fulfill her end of a bargain.
A bargain she probably never should have made.
She smiled faintly at the memory of that night, one after the engagement night—the soft hum of jazz, the taste of wine, and Antonio's mischievous smirk as he shuffled a deck of cards. She had lost to him in a harmless game, or so she thought, and his "reward" had been that she stayed for a few more days than planned.
Now, packing her bags to leave, she felt only a quiet, guilty relief.
