Still Choosing You
Book 1 Chapter 4 — Scene 6: JUST FOR A WHILE
Sunday evening arrived quietly.
The weekend felt shorter than usual.
Perhaps because part of it had disappeared into work.
Perhaps because Emma had spent more time waiting than she realized.
Daniel sat at the dining table.
His laptop remained closed.
For now.
Dinner had finished twenty minutes earlier.
The dishes were washed.
The apartment had settled into its usual evening rhythm.
Outside, the weekend was ending.
Inside, Monday already felt close.
Emma carried two mugs of tea to the table.
She placed one beside Daniel.
"Thanks."
She sat down opposite him.
For a few moments, neither spoke.
The silence wasn't awkward.
Just familiar.
Daniel wrapped one hand around the mug.
The warmth seemed to help.
Or maybe he simply needed something to hold.
Emma studied him quietly.
The last few weeks had changed something.
Not dramatically.
Not enough for anyone outside the marriage to notice.
Just enough for her to notice.
More late evenings.
More messages.
More work.
More tiredness.
More moments when part of him remained somewhere else.
Daniel stared into the tea.
Then sighed.
The sound was small.
Almost lost beneath the ceiling fan.
Emma looked up.
"Tired?"
"A little."
The answer drew a smile from her.
"A little?"
Daniel laughed softly.
"Okay. More than a little."
The smile faded into something gentler.
Something thoughtful.
The question left her before she fully decided to ask it.
"Is it going to stay like this?"
Daniel looked up.
"For work?"
Emma nodded.
Daniel hesitated.
Not because he didn't want to answer.
Because he seemed unsure what the answer actually was.
For a few seconds, he thought about it.
Then he shook his head.
"I don't think so."
Emma waited.
Daniel continued.
"Everyone's still adjusting."
"The reports?"
"Yeah."
He rubbed the back of his neck.
"The new process. The new expectations. Everything."
Emma listened.
Daniel rarely talked much about work.
Not because he was secretive.
Because most days there wasn't much to say.
Lately there seemed to be more.
"Once things settle down, it should get better."
The confidence sounded genuine.
Not forced.
Not defensive.
He truly believed it.
Emma wanted to believe it too.
"How long?"
Daniel smiled slightly.
"A few weeks maybe."
The answer arrived quickly.
Almost hopefully.
Emma nodded.
A few weeks.
Not forever.
Not months.
Not years.
A few weeks.
The phrase felt manageable.
Daniel took a sip of tea.
Then looked at her.
"I'm sorry about yesterday."
Emma shook her head.
"It's okay."
The familiar words returned again.
Daniel lowered his eyes briefly.
This time he seemed less relieved by them.
More disappointed.
"As soon as we get through this adjustment period, things should go back to normal."
Normal.
Emma thought about the word.
The dinners together.
The evenings without spreadsheets.
The weekends that belonged to them.
Normal sounded nice.
Daniel looked tired.
But for the first time in days, he also looked hopeful.
As though he could finally see the end of the extra workload.
He reached across the table and lightly touched her hand.
A simple gesture.
Natural.
Familiar.
"Just for a while."
Emma looked at him.
The words carried certainty.
Not a promise made carelessly.
A promise made because he believed it.
Just for a while.
She nodded.
"Okay."
Daniel smiled.
The tension around his eyes softened slightly.
The conversation moved on after that.
Small things.
Monday.
Groceries.
Laundry.
Ordinary topics.
Eventually they finished their tea.
The mugs were cleared away.
The apartment grew quieter.
A normal Sunday night.
Before bed, Emma passed the study corner.
Daniel's laptop still sat on the desk.
Closed.
Waiting.
For tonight, he left it alone.
Emma paused briefly.
Just for a while.
The words remained with her.
Daniel believed them.
She believed them too.
At least she wanted to.
Because promises were easier to carry when they had an ending attached.
A few weeks.
An adjustment period.
Just for a while.
That night, they went to sleep believing the same thing.
Neither of them knew yet that the late nights were only beginning.
Scene-by-scene release. Continue only when the next scene is ready.