Matt and Ava had been together for almost two years. The night he told her he loved her was one of the best nights of both their lives. Time wore on and the former "best friends" fell into a boring routine. They'd moved in together and time simply took its toll.
It was summertime and Matt had gone back to his native Wisconsin for a while. Truthfully, he needed a break from Ava, they'd been fighting constantly and he needed some time away. She'd been so sad when he left. He hadn't called much while he'd been gone. She fought with him about it for the first few weeks, but then her calls stopped being as frequent, and her voice was hollow when he did speak to her.
He thought they might break up when he got home. The sixteen-hour drive was longer than usual. He didn't feel like he had much to go back to. When he pulled up to their apartment building he sat staring at the steering wheel for almost ten minutes. He was almost afraid to go upstairs. He wasn't even sure if she was home.
He decided not to unpack the car quite yet, and headed upstairs with only one bag. He unlocked his front door, feeling his nervous anticipation grow as he pushed it open.
"Ava?" he called out.
There was no answer. Matt walked down his front hallway into the living room. He wandered around their home like a man in a trance. Her things lay around carelessly.
She hadn't been expecting him to be home. In their bedroom he picked up a pair of her earrings and touched the delicate beads tenderly. He was so entranced by them, and his own empty sorrow that he did not hear the door open and the rustling of bags.
"Oh my God, Matt!" a woman's voice cried out.
Matt turned sharply away from the dresser to see Ava standing in the hallway. Her hair was longer than when he'd left, falling far past her shoulders. Her body was covered only by a thin, white sundress. It was cut low and hugged her generous curves. The light color of the dress contrasted beautifully with her tanned skin and dark hair. It was almost as if she were glowing in the dying light of the evening.
Ava rushed towards him, then stopped dead just out of arm's reach, as if she'd just reminded herself of something.
"It's good to see you," she said coolly, looking down at the ground.
