CHAPTER FIVE: CHAMOMILE

Aurora Animal Clinic – Just Before Closing Time

The last rays of sunset filtered through the frosted glass of Aurora Animal Clinic. Inside, Haylee moved in a rhythm that had become second nature—cleaning the counters, checking Finn’s water, turning off equipment one by one.

Outside, Kyser stood in front of the door, holding a brown paper bag of dinner he impulsively picked up. It had been a long week, and something told him Haylee could use some company. They had grown closer—enough for him to feel comfortable dropping by.

He reached for the door—but paused.

Voices.

He frowned, leaning slightly toward the glass.

Inside, a man’s voice cracked with desperation.

“Haylee, please. Just hear me out. I know I made the biggest mistake of my life. I wasn’t thinking—I was hurting. But I realized… it was always you. It’s you I should’ve stayed with.”

“You realized now?” Haylee’s voice was steady, but there was a tremble beneath it. “After everything you did… now that she’s gone, now you come running back?”

“I was confused—”

“No,” she cut in, her eyes sharp. “You weren’t confused. You made a choice. You chose her. You kissed her. You left me to pick up the pieces. And now that it didn’t work out, suddenly I’m the one you remember?”

Kyser felt the knot in his chest tighten. His grip on the paper bag shifted as the man inside—Edward—stepped closer to Haylee.

“I’m sorry, Haylee. I regret everything. You were right. You told me one day, I’d realize who really stayed. Who truly cared. And you were right.”

There was a pause, heavy and painful.

“Let me fix this,” Edward pleaded.

Haylee’s reply came quiet, but firm. “You can’t fix something that shattered years ago.”

At that, Kyser quietly opened the door, the bell jingling softly.

Haylee flinched slightly, turning toward the sound.

Kyser stepped in, gaze flicking from her to Edward.

“Sorry... am I interrupting something?”

Edward looked startled, and Haylee—though surprised—quickly composed herself.

“No,” she said calmly. “He was just leaving.”

Edward looked at her for a moment longer, but the steel in her voice left no room for argument. With a clenched jaw, he gave Kyser a sharp glance and walked past him without another word.

Silence settled again.

Kyser placed the food gently on the counter. “I didn’t mean to intrude…”

“You didn’t.” Haylee sighed. “It’s okay. Actually… I’m glad you came.”

Kyser offered a small smile. “I brought dinner. Thought maybe you’d like some company.”

Haylee looked at him, a little surprised. “You always seem to show up at the right time.”

He shrugged, trying to hide how much he’d overheard. “Maybe that’s just what friends do.”

Her expression softened. “Thank you.”

Later That Evening

The dinner bag now sat between them on Kyser’s small but cozy dining table. His apartment was neat—warm lighting, books neatly arranged on shelves, a mug with a cat paw print beside his laptop. Haylee glanced around, taking it all in, still a little quiet after what had happened earlier.

Kyser poured hot water into two ceramic mugs. “Chamomile okay?”

Haylee nodded, curling her fingers around the warm cup he handed her. “Thank you… for tonight.”

He gave her a gentle smile and sat across from her. “I didn’t mean to overhear anything at the clinic… but I heard enough to know it hurt.”

There was a beat of silence, then Haylee spoke softly. “It was five years ago. I loved him. I thought we’d build something together. Then one day, I caught him kissing someone else. He said he was confused. And he left. Just like that.”

Kyser’s gaze didn’t waver. “That’s not something you just forget.”

“I tried,” she said. “I worked, I focused on the clinic. I found Finn. He saved me in ways I didn’t expect.”

Kyser’s lips lifted slightly. “Finn’s a good boy.”

Haylee chuckled faintly. “Yeah, he is. He’s the reason I got through it.”

She looked up, studying Kyser for a moment. “What about you?”

He leaned back, sipping his tea before answering. “I was engaged. Bought a ring. We were planning the wedding. I thought I had everything figured out.”

“What happened?”

“She backed out a month before the wedding,” he said, voice steady but distant. “Told me she didn’t really love me. Said she was still in love with her ex and used me to move on.”

Haylee’s heart sank. “I’m so sorry…”

“It’s okay. It took me years to say that without bitterness,” he replied. “She’s married to him now. They have a daughter.”

Haylee was quiet for a moment. “Do you still think about it?”

He shook his head. “Not as much. But sometimes I wonder what I did wrong. Or if I was just… convenient.”

There was a shared silence between them—not awkward, but understanding. Like two souls sitting with old wounds that finally found air to breathe.

Haylee looked down at her tea. “Maybe some people are meant to teach us something painful… so we’d know what we truly deserve.”

Kyser met her eyes. “And maybe… we meet certain people after the storm to remind us that healing doesn’t have to be lonely.”

A small, soft smile touched her lips. “You really think that?”

He smiled back. “Yeah. I do.”

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