Creative Writing Nemo

Boston knew she shouldn’t be here. She’d known it this morning when she’d laced up her sneakers and planned her day. She’d known it when she’d dropped Claire off at daycare, telling the workers she’d be back at 3, just before Mac’s shift ended. She’d known it five minutes ago when she’d handed the cabbie a twenty and a quick thanks.

She knew she shouldn’t be here. Mac had asked her outright not to come here. He’d never done that before. Normally, he was content to let her live as she wished, no matter how crazy he thought her choices were. But not this time. This time he’d come right out and told her not to see Danny. She should have enough respect for her husband to do this one thing.

She knew she shouldn’t be here. And yet here she stood.

--

Mac didn’t want to be here. He had half a dozen reports piled on his desk waiting for his approval, a budget to create before next week’s budget meeting, and hundreds of pieces of evidence that needed to be processed from the three new cases they’d caught this week. He didn’t have time for this.

Clenching his jaw, he pushed the lobby door open, nodding toward the security guard. He wasn’t even sure why he was here. It was clear Danny didn’t want his help. Danny didn’t seem to want anyone’s help. But Boston’s words kept echoing in his head, You’re a hypocrite.

Any maybe he was. He knew what Danny was feeling. The anger. The heartache. The sheer terror. He knew what it was like to have people pity you, saying empty condolences while secretly being overjoyed that it hadn’t happened to them, that their loved one was safe at home. He knew what it was like when the time came when people felt like you’d been pitied enough and thought it was time for you to move on and get over the fact that your whole world had collapsed leaving you pinned underneath the grief. He knew what it was like the first time you laughed again; the first time a pretty girl caught your eye; the first time she wasn’t on your...