That doesn’t sound like Ryan. There never used to be anything that could get in the way of him and his love of editing. Except me. My stomach clenches as a million reasons for that kind of distraction race through my mind. One, in particular, stands out, and I smack my forehead hard with my open palm. I can’t believe I haven’t thought about this before.

“Is he seeing someone?” I mutter. Then my eyes widen, and I clamp my hand over my mouth. “Shit, I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”

Trina’s cackle is distorted by the speaker. Her mouth must be right on top of her microphone. “For a brilliant person, you are really dumb, you know that?”

“You’ve told me this before,” I intone drily.

“Someday you might even listen to me.”

Sighing heavily, I push off the counter and open my pantry. If Trina is going to razz me, I might as well put something in my stomach while she does it. There’s an open box of cereal at the back. I remember buying it, though I couldn’t tell anyone when that was, so it can’t be that old. I shove a handful of it into my mouth dry because I know without looking that there’s no milk in my fridge. It only tastes a little stale, so I grab another handful.

“He’s not the type to get distracted,” I say around my mouthful.

“I’m so glad you’re eating that I’m not even going to tell you not to talk with your mouth full.” Even though I know she’s giving me a hard time, I allow myself a pat on the back for at least having the presence of mind during my earlier spiral to call her. Her sarcasm has knocked enough sense into me to push me to put some food in my mouth.

Let it go, I tell myself. Don’t ask. The conversation has moved on. It’s only going to make you look desperate. “What’s going on with him, then?” I flatten my lips together as soon as I say it. Why do I never listen to my own advice?

Maybe Trina is right. Maybe I am really dumb.

“He’s worried about you,” she says as if telling me is against her better judgment. “In his defense, you should not have emailed him your second draft at two in the morning.”

“But that’s when I finished it.”

The silence on her end of the line stretches for so long that I think she might have actually hung up on me. “Trina?”

“Dumb, I tell you. Like…you can’t even see it?”

“See what?”