Dedicated for my first voter

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Every time the thought of Luke reading the chat plays in Cobie's mind, the familiar twist hits her in the guts. Did he notice it was about him? What would he think about her now if he did? But no, he couldn't be that sure because the chat was too vague to tell.

It was stupid of her for leaving the screen on when she ran to the bathroom. In her defense, who would have guessed that Luke was going to pop up in her cubicle and wait for her there? He'd never done it before.

Glancing at the clock that shows 9:41 PM, Cobie sighs before roaming her eyes over the large and empty office space. Working overtime alone is just tedious, but as Luke said, this is the big fish they need to catch. Maybe she can take a taxi instead of catching the train home once she's done, to reward herself. If she knew she would stay back this late, she would have brought her car. Or maybe not, because her family needs it more than she does.

The small red dot in the bottom corner of her screen blinks again, indicating BreadPitt just sent her another message. She has been ignoring him for hours now. Granted, talking to him is fun and can be addictive, but it's not a good idea when she has a project to finalize.

Almost done! Finally. Now waiting for the data to upload. And why did you send me all those weird GIFs?

Because I was bored

Why not talk with other girls on the sites?

I did but they were no fun today. One chick asked to meet up this weekend. I might go and give it a try. You haven't answered my question btw

What question? I told you he is not to seduce. Not in a million years.

Not that. I was curious why you find him hot but not hot enough to bang

That's not what I said.

Okay. Not hot enough for you to make a move

Wait, the files are done. Need to send them now.

After writing a short message to Luke, Cobie adds his secretary's, Bram's, and the research analyst team's email to the carbon copy field. As soon as she clicks the 'Send' button, she realizes that one file isn't on the attachment list. The biggest one.

"Shit!"

The chatbox blinks again.

So?

Wait. One file didn't upload for some reason. I need to redo it.

Why didn't you just do the rest tomorrow morning and go home? It doesn't make any

Fuck!My cat is puking on my carpet

Ouch! Good luck with that!

Cobie glances at the progress bar which is stating 37% uploaded. She has a little time now.

So, about your question.

Her fingers stop dancing on the keyboard while she's deciding how much she wants to share with the guy on the other side of the screen. Up to now, she and BreadPitt only talk about random stuff without revealing their real names or other crucial personal information. What makes her wary of telling him the truth? He doesn't know her in real life, does he? And with this distance, there is no way they will ever bump into each other in a random place.

So, I've been working with this guy for over two years now. Actually, he's my boss. No, he's the boss of my boss. If only he wasn't that infuriatingly hot and charming, work would've been much easier to handle lol. Anyways, he never dated anyone from this office. At least, not that I know of. I think it's some kind of a rule he sets for himself. I don't know. Even if he dated people at work, I wouldn't stand in line. I never trust a popular guy like him, you know. But it doesn't mean he wasn't hot enough to bang :))

Her mind jumps back to her high school years when all the mess started. She was still the young and curious Cobie who wore her heart on her sleeves until a popular boy in town smashed her spirit to a pulp. The humiliation she faced afterward changed her forever.

She shakes her head to snap at her own thoughts. "Focus now, Cobie," she mumbles to herself.

The upload-complete notification blinks on the screen, pushing the rest of the windows to the background. She clicks the "Okay" button and immediately ticks "Send" with a satisfied groan.

"This is it," she says, closing the rest of the browser windows. "I'm going home."

When Cobie's taxi pulls over in her driveway, the kitchen light is still on. A golden glow beams behind the white roll curtain on the back window. She glances at the digital clock on the taxi dashboard. It's almost eleven. Her mom and her sister are usually already in their bed around this time. Which one of them is still up this late?

"Here's the change," says the taxi driver, a couple of banknotes in his hand.

"Thank you." She takes the money and jumps out of the car. "G'night!"

When she opens the back door, Rose is sitting at the kitchen island, her pale fingers playing with the stem of the wine glass in front of her. Unlike Cobie, her sister has a fuller body shape, tall figure, and silky blonde hair girls would kill for. Rose's face is what people call the face of an angel. And with the pair of clear blue eyes, straight nose, and perfectly curved lips, she gets into trouble with boys from time to time.

Cobie finds it entertaining how people are often astounded when they learn they are siblings. Because of Cobie's Asian genes from her mom's side, their looks are noticeably different, except for their plump lips and pointy chins. Still, her little sister hates to admit that they are half-sisters. To her, there is no such term for half-siblings. It's either sibling or not related at all.

"I thought you would be sleeping in your office tonight."

Cobie snorts as she locks the kitchen door. "I know I need a new bed but I still prefer it over my office chair." She walks over to the fridge to grab a bottle of water. "And why are you still up? Did Mom give you a hard time?"

"No, not all, aside from the missing filling in my sandwich she prepared for lunch, she's in a good mood today. But Amy said she disappeared to the park alone this afternoon."

"Again?"

"Yeah." Rose glances at the hallway, lowering her tone. "She clearly wasn't very happy that Mom keeps doing this. And the residential care talk was brought up again. She said Mom needs it. ASAP."

"Okay. I guess it's really time to start calling around." Cobie sighs before chugging down the water in one go. "When will your full-time teaching start? July, is it?"

"Mid august. We still have three and a half months to find a good one for Mom."

"Nuh-uh." Cobie shakes her head. "The sooner the better because the moving transition is going to take some time. I want her to get used to it first."

Rose frowns, folding her arms together on the table. "Can we afford it, though? I mean if we want a good one for her."

Cobie chews her lower lip while doing the quick calculation in her head. "We should be. I will look into it this week. Maybe we can cut off some expenses that we don't really need," she says, answered by an approving nod from her little sister. She rinses the empty bottle before filling it up with water again. "So, why are you still awake this late, with your wine, and that pouty face? Don't you have class tomorrow morning?"

"I do." Rose sighs audibly. "I couldn't sleep. So, I thought a glass of wine or two could help me a bit."

Cobie puts back the bottle in the fridge and turns around, giving her sister her full attention. "What's wrong?"

Rose shrugs. "Same shit, different day."

"You guys are fighting again." Cobie's voice sounds more like a conclusion than a question. "What is it about this time?"

"This long-distance thing is just getting harder every day. It feels like we keep adding new issues to fight about without resolving the previous ones." Rose brings her hand to her temple and massages it slowly. "It's exhausting."

"Maybe you two are just missing each other? And the frustrations are too high for you two to think sensibly?"

"I don't know, Cobie. But he's different now. I can feel it." Rose looks up at her, the golden light from above her glimmering in her glazy eyes. "You've known Harry longer than I have. He's never been short-tempered like this before, right?"

"Yeah."

"And he said he needs space."

"Oh. That...doesn't sound good."

"The distance is already drifting us apart, and now this. What kind of space is he talking about? We can't even see each other every week! He has all the space he needs without even having to ask for it."

"Sounds like he's in the middle of a situation."

"What situation then?"

Cobie shrugs. "I don't know. I mean, you guys have been together for almost two years. Haven't you learned something already when he's like this?"

"We weren't together together the whole time, and you know that."

Rose's line brings Cobie back to her first year in university when she met Harry for the first time. They took the same major, ended up in the same study group, and they just clicked effortlessly, as buddies. Ironically, Harry was the type of guy Cobie avoided like the plague when it came to dating. His good-looking, outgoing upbringing, and his big brain were enough to earn the spot on the popular-guy list on campus. Girls were crazy about him, Rose included.

When Harry made a move on her little sister, Cobie was the first person who was against it. In her opinion, Rose had no idea what she was getting herself into, but here they are —thanks to her little sister's stubbornness, still together and haven't given up on the catastrophe they call a relationship.

The two have a unique concept of commitment. They take a break from each other more often than one catches the common cold. Once they solve their problem, they get back together like new lovers reuniting after being separated for life. It's something Cobie never understands despite how well she knows both of them.

"Nevermind. Maybe I'm just overthinking it. Maybe he's just having a hard time at uni and not ready to share it with me yet," Rose says, sounding like she's trying to convince herself.

"Yeah. Maybe."

"I was just worried he would find someone new in his magister program, you know. Someone who is within his reach now, who understands his current situation more than I do. You know how girls are around him." Rose takes a deep breath and purses her lips. "Okay. Enough with complaining. I just need to trust him. That's all he asks from me."

Cobie stares at the wine glass in her sister's hand, wishing she could be as hopeful as Rose is. In all honesty, it's hard to see them staying a couple in the next few years. Maybe not even in a year. Not that Cobie's going to voice out her thoughts. Rose is too in love to listen to her anyway. On the other hand, Cobie never saw her sister this happy being with someone, and she deserves to be happy, especially after how badly their father hurt her.

"Whatever happens, put your happiness first, okay?" Cobie says, earning a smile from her little sister even though it doesn't reach her eyes.

A shuffling sound echoes from the stairs, prompting them to shift their gazes to the hallway. In the next seconds, a middle-aged woman emerges from the dark hall before she stops by the kitchen door. A black silk nightie snugs comfortably on her slender body, the exact shade of her hair color, contrasting her pale skin tone.

"Mom? What are you doing up this late?" Cobie asks, glancing at her mom's bare feet. "Why aren't you wearing your slippers, and where is your night robe? It's still too cold to wear just that."

"I think I overslept. I need to pack lunch for you two."

"It's not even midnight yet, Mom. Come, I'll tuck you back in." Cobie glances at her sister, who faintly nods at her before she escorts her mom upstairs. "And you can catch a cold if you don't wear enough."

"But I feel perfectly fine."

"I know. But it's still not that warm yet. It's better to wear pajamas."

Once they are inside the main bedroom, her mom climbs the bed while Cobie rearranges the duvet for her. Rose is right about their mom being in a good mood. The big grin on her lips and the twinkle in her eyes are evident.

"I've been thinking about what I'm going to make for your lunch. What about fried rice?"

"No, Mom. Don't worry about packing up our lunch. You need your sleep. Why don't you just relax in bed tomorrow morning until Rose is ready to take you to Amy?"

"I'm your mother. It's my task to prepare your food."

"I know, but we aren't seven anymore. I'm twenty-six, and Rose is turning twenty-two soon. We are more than capable of taking care of ourselves."

Her mom sighs, the adoration glint flashing in her charcoal eyes. "Where has the time gone? How have my girls become this big now?"

"We grew, of course. You've been feeding us as if you raise giant babies," she says, answered by her mom giggling. "So, no more waking up early and making food for Rose and me. Okay?"

Despite the frown forming on her mom's face, the woman nods at her daughter's suggestion. "Alright."

"Good," Cobie replies, knowing that her mom will probably do exactly the opposite the next morning. "Goodnight, Mom. Sleep well." She leans over to kiss her mom's forehead, turns off the night lamp, and makes her way to the door.

It's always painful to see how her mom's memory declines over time. The doctor has warned that it's inevitable. They're going to deal with it sooner or later, depending on how her mom reacts to the medications. For now, she just wants to hold on to what they have until the day her mom wakes up, disoriented, and looking at Cobie and Rose as if they are strangers. Cobie shivers at the thoughts.

Forcing herself to shake away the gloomy thoughts from her head, she saunters to her room and starts with her night routine. When she finally hits her warm and inviting bed, she reaches out for her phone from the nightstand. An email notification blinks on the screen. From Luke.

As she decides to deal with it in the morning, she switches the phone to silent mode and turns off the screen. Tomorrow is another day.

🔹🔹🔹