The Soul Mate (Roommates, # 4)

Mason

I felt like I’d been holding my breath ever since I’d left Bren’s apartment last night.

As Mondays went, it was even worse than usual-complete with a drab, rainy sky and the promise of a stilted lunch with only one of my parents instead of both of them. Because, from now on, that was how I’d be seeing them most of the time now-separately.

After my second appointment of the day, I trudged back to my office, determined to get some work done if only to feel slightly accomplished on top of whatever else this deluge of disappointment and confusion had already caused.

As soon as I sat down, though, Trent walked in behind me, knocking on the open door before stepping in front of my desk.

“Why aren’t you ready to go?”

I closed my eyes, then opened them again, trying to hide my exasperation and all-around exhaustion. I’d barely slept when I got home last night. Instead, I’d spent the whole of the evening pacing, thinking about Bren, wondering if I ought to have stayed longer to comfort her. As potential motherhood had been ripped away from her, I’d behaved like an asshat when I could have and should have been her rock. If she didn’t trust me anymore, I wouldn’t blame her. But the again…maybe she’d never really trusted me at all.

Not that I had any way of knowing how she felt to begin with. She hadn’t answered the text I’d sent last night when I’d gotten home, and she’d seemed to need some space. I’d already made the mistake of crowding her once and I wasn’t about to do it again.

“Dude, what is up with you?” Trent asked.

“I’m sorry, man. Distracted is all. Where am I supposed to be going?”

Trent’s mouth became a thin line as he tilted his head to the side. “It’s our day in neonatal. We’ve got to be there in ten minutes and we obviously also have to stop for a decent-sized coffee for you on the way.”

“I’m fine,” I shot back.

“You have purple bags under your eyes. Now, come on. Grab your coat. Coffee’s on me.”

I did as he asked, then followed him down the hall, stopping only to instruct my assistant which calls to take and which to get messages for. Paramount, obviously, was to call me if Bren phoned the office. Though of course, now that she wasn’t pregnant, she’d have no reason to.

“You know what? Just get messages from everyone,” I corrected myself, then followed Trent through the open door and into the wide, drearily lit atrium.

Rain flecked the wide skylights, and I glanced up briefly before turning back to Trent.

“Okay, I could probably do with a coffee,” I admitted.

“No kidding,” Trent said, still leading me through the revolving door and onto the street. Our private practice wasn’t far from the hospital-convenient for when our patients went into labor-and luckily there was a Starbucks just next door to both.

I walked into the dim little cafe and got into the line, only vaguely aware that Trent still stood beside me as I waited. After I’d ordered, though, we stood at the delivery counter, and from my peripheral vision I could see him surveying me warily.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“I should ask you the same thing. You’ve been a zombie all day and you love going to neonatal but you aren’t even smiling.”

“I’m just not in a baby mood today,” I said.

Trent squinted at me as my name was called and I collected my coffee.

“You’re in a rough field to not be in a baby mood,” Trent said with a short laugh.

“I know, I know. Look, things have just been weird for me lately. Besides, what’s with the third degree? Why don’t we talk about you for a change?”

“Because I actually have my shit together. You, on the other hand-”

“Hey,” I said. “Look, I’ve got a lunch date with my mom later and I’m just weirded out about how it’s going to be now that my parents are splitting up. I think people always mean for these things to go amicably and then it turns into a bloodbath, so.”

Trent shook his head. “Nope. I don’t think that’s it.”

“I’m telling you it is, though.”

“Look, I get that the whole parental thing is weird.”

“It’s beyond weird. I’ve only known them together my whole life and now it’s going to be an adjustment. I’ll get over it.”

Trent nodded. “My parents have been divorced for a long time. It’s going to be strange at first and it’s going to be worse when they start dating again, but it’ll work out. I’ve known your dad for a long time. He’s not the sort of guy who lets things get ugly if he can help it, and your mom seems great.”

“I know. That’s true.” I took a deep breath. “And I guess that’s not all of it either.”

“No?” Trent said. “Color me shocked.”

“Just humor me here, okay?” I said. “So Bren and I opened the envelope last night.”

“I figured,” Trent said, nodding.

“What, are you a mind reader now, too?”

“No, Bren called and canceled a checkup we had on the books,” Trent said.

“At least I know her phone is still working. I have no evidence of that myself.”

Trent shrugged. “People handle things in different ways. But hey, you both dodged a bullet, right?”

“Right,” I sighed. “I just wish it felt that way.”

“It doesn’t?”

“No. I mean, you’d think I’d be thrilled not to have a baby with a virtual stranger, but over these last two weeks we’ve just gotten closer, you know? Like, even in such a short period, I feel really connected to her.”

Trent led me through the hospital’s revolving doors but didn’t say anything.

“What?” I prompted.