The Scent of Letting Go

Chapter 1

1,147 words

Ethan Shaw changed the door lock password.

The new password was sent to my email, and after trying twice, I got in.

The apartment smelled wrong. The air was filled with gardenia-scented fabric softener, not the one I used.

There were clothes in the washing machine that had not been taken out. One of his shirts and a floral dress. The dress was a size S, and I wore an L.

I took the clothes out, folded them, and placed them on the sofa armrest.

I glanced through the trash can too. Pizza for two, two cups of Coke, and neither was Diet Coke.

I only drank Diet Coke. He knew that.

So neither of those two cups was for me.

I did not lose my temper. I sat on the sofa and waited for half an hour.

When he came back and saw me, he froze for a second before changing his shoes. "You’re back early today."

I pointed at the dress on the sofa. "Who did you wash this for?"

"A coworker. She spilled wine at a party—"

"A coworker who wears size S, loves Coke, and uses gardenia fabric softener?"

He did not answer.

I picked up my bag and opened the door.

"I’ll use the new password just this once. Change it again, and don’t send it to me."