Finally, afternoon came.
Elara gathered her things and headed downstairs. As she walked through the corridor, colleagues passed her with quick nods.
"Good afternoon, Miss May."
"Headed out?"
She smiled. "Yes. An important meeting."
She didn't mention the meeting was with a school gate and a six-year-old.
At the elevator, she spotted Thomas.
"Thomas, I need you to handle the Shaw file. Review my comments and send the updated drafts to the team. I'll be back tomorrow morning."
"Of course, ma'am. Everything alright?"
"Perfect," she said. "Just family matters."
The elevator doors closed.
---
In the office, she was Miss May. Professional. Controlled. The woman who got things done.
No one knew about her marriage. There were rumors, of course—there always were. A wedding ring she sometimes forgot to remove. A last name that didn't match her office badge. But she never confirmed anything. And eventually, people stopped asking.
Her divorce was a ghost that lived only in her own chest.
But the delivery app didn't know that.
This morning, when she'd placed the order for Lucy's bunny, she'd used her real name. Mrs. Stoddard. And she'd given her office number without thinking.
So when the courier arrived at the reception desk, he hadn't asked for Miss May.
He'd asked for Mrs. Stoddard.
The receptionist had blinked, confused. "We don't have a Mrs. Stoddard here. Do you mean Miss May?"
The courier had shrugged. "The name on the package says Mrs. Stoddard. Same number."
A brief, awkward pause. Then the receptionist had called upstairs anyway.
Elara had gone down, signed for it, and said nothing.
Now, stepping into the parking garage, she let out a breath.
Mrs. Stoddard.
The name still fit, even if the marriage didn't.
She got into her car and started the engine.
Lucy was waiting.
The drive to Lucy's school took twenty minutes.
Elara kept her hands steady on the wheel, but her mind drifted. The nightmare from last night, the CEO visit .
She shook it all off as she pulled into the school pickup lane.
A line of cars snaked around the building. Mothers and fathers waited with tired smiles and coffee cups. Elara joined the queue, turned off the engine, and watched the front doors.
Then she saw her.
Lucy came bouncing out of the school, a rainbow backpack slung over her shoulders, her hair in two ponytails that had come half undone. She was laughing at something a friend said, and for a moment, Elara forgot everything else.
She stepped out of the car and waved.
"Mommy!"
Lucy broke into a sprint, her little legs carrying her as fast as they could. She crashed into Elara's legs, wrapping her arms tight.
"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy! I missed you so much!"
Elara bent down and scooped her up, breathing in the smell of chalk and sunshine and little girl.
"I missed you too, my love. More than you know."
"Did you get my bunny?" Lucy pulled back, eyes wide. "You promised!"
Elara laughed. "I got your bunny. It's waiting at home. But first—" she opened the car door and helped Lucy into her booster seat, "—we're going somewhere special."
"Where? Where? Tell me!"
"It's a surprise."
"A good surprise?"
"The best."
Lucy kicked her feet in excitement as Elara buckled her in. "Is it ice cream? Is it the playground? Is it—"
"You'll see."
Elara closed the door, got back in the driver's seat, and pulled out of the pickup line.
---
Fifteen minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot of Wonderland Amusement Park.
Lucy's gasp was so loud it filled the whole car.
"The amusement park! Mommy, the amusement park!"
She was already trying to unbuckle herself before the car stopped moving.
"Wait, wait—let me park first."
Elara found a spot, turned off the engine, and helped Lucy out. The little girl grabbed her hand and tugged her toward the entrance, practically vibrating.
"Can we do the Ferris wheel? Can we? Please, please, please?"
"We can do whatever you want," Elara said, buying two tickets at the booth. "Today is all about you."
Lucy beamed.
They stepped through the gates into a world of color and noise. Children screamed on roller coasters. The scent of popcorn and cotton candy hung in the air. A carousel played a cheerful tune, and the Ferris wheel turned slowly against the afternoon sky.
Lucy dragged her mother toward the bumper cars first.
"This one, Mommy! This one!"
Elara laughed and climbed into a car with her. "Hold on tight."
They spun and bumped and crashed into other cars, Lucy shrieking with joy the whole time. For a few minutes, Elara forgot about work. Forgot about the CEO. Forgot about the empty medicine drawer.
She was just a mother, laughing with her daughter.
After the bumper cars came the carousel. Lucy chose a pink horse with a golden mane, and Elara stood beside her, one hand on the pole, the other on Lucy's back.
Then the Ferris wheel.
They sat across from each other in the swaying carriage as it lifted them into the sky. The whole park spread out below them—tiny people, tiny rides, tiny worries.
"Mommy?" Lucy said, looking out at the horizon.
"Yes, baby?"
"Are you happy?"
Elara's throat tightened. She reached across and took Lucy's hand.
"Right now? With you? I'm very happy."
Lucy smiled, satisfied, and turned back to the view.
The carriage rose higher. The sun began its slow descent.
Finally, they got home.
The sun had dipped below the skyline, painting the living room in shades of orange and gold. Lucy kicked off her shoes by the door and ran straight for the stairs.
"Bath first, little miss," Elara called after her.
"Aww, Mommy—"
"Bath. Then dinner. Then bunny."
Lucy groaned dramatically but trudged upstairs. Elara followed, running the water until it was warm, adding a squirt of bubble bath that smelled like strawberries.
Lucy splashed and played while Elara sat on the edge of the tub, watching her. These quiet moments—they were everything.
"Okay, time to get out."
She wrapped Lucy in a fluffy towel, helped her brush her teeth, and handed her a pair of soft pajamas—the ones with little stars on them.
"Get dressed. I'll go make dinner."
Lucy nodded, still damp and smiling.
---
Downstairs, Elara moved through the kitchen on autopilot. She boiled pasta, warmed a simple tomato sauce, and poured a glass of cold milk into Lucy's favorite cup.
By the time Lucy came down—hair brushed, pajamas on, smelling like strawberries—the table was set.
"Mommy!" Lucy spotted the wrapped package on the counter. "Is that—"
Elara smiled and handed it to her.
Lucy tore into the brown paper like a tiny tornado. When the fluffy bunny doll emerged, her eyes went wide.
"BUNNY!"
She hugged the doll so tight its floppy ears stuck out sideways. Then she threw her arms around Elara's waist.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mommy! I love her! I love her so much!"
Elara kissed the top of her head. "She loves you too. Now sit. Dinner's ready."
Lucy placed the bunny carefully on the chair beside her—so she can watch me eat—and dug into her pasta.
Elara sat down across from her, about to take her first bite, when her phone buzzed on the table.
Unknown Number.
She stared at it for a moment. Her fork hovered in the air , then she answered.
'Hello?'