The second glass disappeared more easily than the first.
The warmth spreading through her body gradually softened the sharp edges of her grief—not enough to erase it, but enough to quiet the relentless ache that had settled deep inside her chest.
Her thoughts, however, remained hopelessly tangled, drifting from one memory to another without warning.
Nathan’s smile.
Their first date.
The tiny silver ring he had once jokingly slipped onto her finger after winning it from a carnival game, promising that one day he would replace it with a real engagement ring.
She could still remember how seriously he had looked at her that evening despite the cheap little prize resting between them.
“Just wait for me,” he had said with a smile.
“When I’ve saved enough money, I’ll give you the wedding you deserve.”
A faint laugh escaped her lips before dissolving into silence.
“I was truly stupid,” she whispered, staring into the wine swirling gently inside her glass.
“I really was.” She was not angry because fate had kept them apart.
She was angry because, in the end, she had been the only one left there pending.
Her gaze drifted toward the bedside table where her phone lay face down exactly where she had left it.
She had switched it off before stepping into the shower, unwilling to hear another apology or another explanation she no longer had the strength to believe.
The room fell quiet once more and only the steady rhythm of rain tapping against the window and the faint music still drifting from the television disturbed the silence.
Another love song had begun to play, its lyrics speaking of soulmates who had crossed impossible distances just to find one another.
Lena let out a tired sigh.
“What a ridiculous day to play songs like that.”
She reached for the remote, intending to turn the television off altogether, but before her fingers could find it, a sharp knock echoed from the door.
The sound startled her enough that the wine in her glass rippled gently.
She slightly frowned.
No one should have been visiting her.
For a brief moment her heart lurched painfully.
The thought appeared almost instinctively before she forced herself to dismiss it.
He could not possibly know where she was.
Another knock followed, softer this time.
“Miss Hartwell?” a gentle female voice called from the hallway.
“It’s room service.”
Lena closed her eyes in quiet relief before setting the wine glass aside.
“I’ll be right there.” She pulled the robe a little tighter around herself and crossed the room, opening the door just enough to peek outside.
The same receptionist from downstairs stood in the corridor, smiling warmly as she balanced a small tray in her hands.
Resting upon it was a white porcelain teapot, a matching cup, a small bowl of sugar, and several neatly arranged biscuits.
“I know you said you didn’t need anything,” the young woman said apologetically, “but the weather is miserable today, and you looked like you could use something warm.
This is complimentary.”
For a moment Lena simply stared at her.
The kindness of a complete stranger felt almost overwhelming after everything she had experienced today.
“Thank you,” she softly muttered, her voice thick with emotion.
“You really didn’t have to do this.”
The receptionist smiled warmly at her, “Everyone deserves a little kindness on Pairing Day.” Those simple words lingered in Lena’s mind long after the young woman had walked away.
She closed the door and carried the tray back into the room and set it beside the half-finished bottle of wine, her eyes lingering on the two drinks resting side by side.
One promised forgetfulness.
The other offered comfort.
Without thinking, she reached for the cup of hot tea first.
It was warm and comforting, but it could not compete with the pleasant warmth the wine had already begun spreading through her body.
She reached for her glass once again.
“You are the better companion…” She softly muttered and sooner another glass of wine disappeared more quickly than the first, and before long the bottle was empty.
Lena stared at it for a moment before letting out a soft, drunken laugh.
“So that’s it?”
Her gaze wandered back to the minibar and it was only after a brief hesitation that she pushed herself unsteadily to her feet and crossed the room.
The warmth in her body had begun to cloud her judgment, making the heaviness in her heart seem strangely distant.
She opened the minibar once more, selected another bottle almost at random, and carried it back to the bed.
This time she did not bother with the wine glass.
She uncorked the bottle and took several generous swallows straight from it before leaning back against the headboard with a satisfied sigh.
Suddenly, Lena stood up a little too quickly and immediately swayed on her feet, forcing herself to grab the edge of the bed for support.
After a moment she steadied herself and began moving to the beat of the music playing softly from the television.
A wide, drunken smile spread across her face as she raised the bottle in one hand and swayed from side to side.
“Wine and music…” she giggled, nodding to herself as though she had just discovered the perfect combination.
“Best combination.”
She took another sip before continuing to sway, completely forgetting about the tears she had shed only moments earlier.
For a brief span that evening, Lena was not thinking about Nathan, the Pairing Authority, or the life that had fallen apart around her.
There was only the music, the warmth of the wine, and the strange, dizzying feeling that perhaps, just for tonight, she could forget everything.
**************
CASSIAN
Cassian remained seated behind his desk for several minutes, his attention fixed on the acquisition reports before him, though he had not absorbed a single word.
The sensation beneath his ribs had grown stronger as he felt Lena was nearby.
He could feel her through the bond now with a clarity that had become almost impossible to ignore.