The taxi ride to work had been quiet, almost too quiet. Daniel stared out the window at the morning traffic, watching other people in their cars going about their normal lives. He'd sold his Honda six months ago when the cost of living got too high and Sarah's lawyer fees started piling up. The monthly payments, insurance, gas – it all became too much after the divorce.
Now he took taxis or the bus everywhere, another reminder of how his life had fallen apart.
The C-shaped scar on his palm kept catching his eye every time he shifted position in the backseat. He tried to keep his hands in his pockets, but the mark seemed to throb with its own pulse.
"Here's fine," Daniel told the driver as they pulled up to Meridian Holdings.
He paid the fare and stepped out onto the sidewalk, looking up at the familiar glass and steel tower reaching toward the gray morning sky. Same corporate logo gleaming in the sunlight. Same building where his life had imploded, where Richard had stolen his wife right under his nose.
Daniel stood there for a moment, adjusting the expensive suit that still felt foreign against his skin. The cologne Cassandra had sprayed on him was probably too strong, but he'd been in such a hurry to get out of that hotel room that he hadn't argued.
People streamed past him on the sidewalk – other office workers, delivery guys, tourists with cameras. Normal people living normal lives. Daniel took a deep breath and joined the flow of bodies moving toward the building entrance.
The lobby was busy with its usual morning rush. Marble floors echoed with the sound of dress shoes and muted conversations. Daniel could feel eyes on him as he made his way toward the elevators, but that wasn't unusual. Ever since Sarah left, people had been watching him, whispering behind his back.
'There goes Daniel Reeves, the pathetic guy whose wife ran off with a board member.'
The murmurs followed him everywhere now. In the break room, at meetings, even in the bathroom. Everyone knew his business, everyone had an opinion about what had happened. Most days he tried to ignore it, but today something felt different.
The elevator doors opened with a soft ding, revealing a crowded car full of workers. Daniel recognized some faces – people from accounting, a few from marketing, some tech guys from his own department. They all looked at him, and he looked back.
For a moment, nobody moved.
"Excuse me," Daniel said, pushing his way into the already tight space.
'Christ, it's like sardines in here.'
Bodies pressed against him from all sides as the elevator started its slow climb. Daniel felt several people giving him sideways glances, their eyes scanning his new suit, probably wondering where he'd gotten the money for something so expensive.
Around the fifth floor, an older woman from HR touched his arm gently.
"Are you OK, honey?" she asked.
Everyone in the elevator turned to look at him. Daniel felt the weight of their stares, the expectation in the air.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he said, forcing his voice to sound normal.
The woman smiled warmly. "Well, you look very nice today. And you smell wonderful."
Daniel almost grimaced remembering how Cassandra had practically suffocated him with perfume before he left the hotel. The scent was still strong, probably too strong, but the old woman seemed to like it.
"Thank you," he managed.
"I heard about what happened with your wife," she continued, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper that everyone could still hear.
"Yeah," Daniel said simply.
The woman's expression hardened. "That Richard is a real asshole."
The rest of the elevator occupants shifted uncomfortably, glancing at each other with worried expressions. Nobody talked about board members like that, not out loud.
But the old woman wasn't finished. She looked around at all the uncomfortable faces and shook her head.
"What? It's the truth, isn't it? Maybe when he sleeps with everyone's wife, then you'll all speak up for yourselves." She paused, then added with a wicked gleam in her eye, "Hell, maybe he's been sleeping with men too. Who knows?"
Despite everything that had happened, despite the confusion and fear from this morning, Daniel felt a small smile escape his lips. For the first time in months, someone was actually defending him instead of pitying him or gossiping about him.
The old woman noticed his smile and patted his arm again. "When the right person comes along, they'll love you no matter what, honey. Don't let anyone tell you different."
"Thank you," Daniel said, and meant it.
The elevator dinged at his floor. As the doors opened, the woman waved at him.
"Bye bye, dear."
Daniel waved back, then stepped out into the hallway. The brief moment of warmth from the elevator faded as soon as he entered the tech department. Here, everything looked exactly the same as always – rows of cubicles filled with monitors and tangled cables, the soft hum of servers and air conditioning, the familiar smell of coffee and electronics.
He walked past workstations where his colleagues were already deep into their morning routines. Code scrolling across screens, keyboards clicking, the occasional frustrated sigh when something didn't work.
"Hi Michael," he said to one of his coworkers.
"Yeah, hey," Michael replied without looking up from his computer, the kind of dismissive response Daniel had gotten used to.
But Daniel noticed how Michael's eyes flicked over his suit, taking in the expensive fabric and perfect fit. The same look he'd been getting all morning.
He was almost to his desk when someone grabbed him from behind.
"Yooo man, you look like a million bucks," a familiar voice said. "But you're sweating like crazy."
Daniel turned to see Noah, his closest friend at work and probably his only real ally in the building. At five-foot-eight with prematurely gray hair and a solid build that suggested he spent time in the gym without overdoing it, Noah had the kind of presence that commanded respect in the office. He worked in IT security, one level above Daniel in the company hierarchy, and had been the one to get Daniel this job in the first place.
"Did you take out a loan for this suit or steal it?" Noah asked with a grin.
They started walking together toward Daniel's workstation. Daniel felt some of the tension leave his shoulders. If anyone would give him straight answers, it would be Noah.
"No, but man, I need to ask you a few questions," Daniel said, his voice dropping. "It's important."
Noah's expression grew more serious. "Anything, man. What's going on?"
Daniel took a deep breath. "Do you guys ever play pranks on me? Like involving women, or blood, or something weird like that?"
Noah stopped walking and stared at him. "What do you mean a woman and blood? What the hell are you talking about?"
"Yesterday after work, I went to Jimmy's bar to drink," Daniel said, the words coming out in a rush. "There was this woman there, and I told her about Sarah, about how I can't get her out of my head. So she offered to help by having a one-night stand with me, but she made this fucking bargain that I'd have to stay with her forever. Then we did this blood whole thing, like cutting our palms and pressing them together, and now she's stuck with me. She even got me this suit."
"ARE YOU CRAZY?" Noah shouted, his voice echoing across the office.
Several heads turned in their direction. Noah immediately looked around, realizing he'd drawn attention, and grabbed Daniel's arm.
"Sorry, sorry," Noah whispered urgently, pulling Daniel closer. "You did what? Are you sure this actually happened? I mean, you've been drinking a lot lately, and—"
"I'm completely sure," Daniel interrupted. "Look, she gave me this mark."
He held up his left palm toward Noah, showing him the C-shaped scar.
Noah looked down at Daniel's palm, squinting at it for a long moment.
"Man," Noah said slowly, shaking his head. "I don't see anything."
Daniel felt his heart sink. "What do you mean you don't see anything?"
"Your palm looks completely normal," Noah said, genuine concern creeping into his voice. "Daniel, this ex-wife situation is really messing with your head. You need to get some therapy."
Daniel stared at his palm, then at Noah's face, then back at his palm. The C-shaped scar was still there, clear as day from his perspective.
"You really don't see it?" Daniel asked.
"See what? There's nothing there, man."
Daniel felt anger and panic flare up inside him. Noah was supposed to be his best friend, the guy who'd brought him into this company, his senior in the IT department. If Noah wouldn't believe him, who would?
"It's not about Sarah," Daniel snapped.
But Noah was already backing away, that concerned look on his face getting stronger.
"Look, I've got to run. I dropped some data files on your desk that need to be uploaded today. We'll talk later, OK? But seriously, Daniel, maybe you should talk to someone. A professional."
Daniel watched his friend walk away, leaving him standing alone in the middle of the office. He looked down at his palm again – the C-shaped scar was still there, as real as anything he'd ever felt.
There was a mirror mounted on the wall nearby, part of the office's modern design. Daniel walked over to it and held up his palm to the reflection.
Nothing. In the mirror, his palm looked completely normal.
But when he looked directly at his hand, the mark was still there.
"What the hell?" he whispered.
He tried it again, holding his palm up to the mirror, then looking directly at it. Mirror showed nothing. Direct view showed the scar.
'This is impossible. Scars don't just disappear in mirrors.'
Daniel felt his heart rate picking up. Either he was losing his mind, or something was happening to him that he didn't understand. Something that had started last night with Cassandra and that broken glass and the promise he'd made.
He looked around the office, at all the normal people doing normal work, typing on their computers and answering phones and living their regular lives. Everything looked exactly the same as it always had, but Daniel felt like he was seeing it all from behind glass now, like he was separated from the normal world by something he couldn't name.
The mark on his palm throbbed slightly, reminding him of Cassandra's words from this morning.
'We're married now.'
Daniel shook his head and walked toward his desk, trying to push the thoughts away. He had work to do, files to upload, a normal day to get through. But the feeling that his life had fundamentally changed overnight wouldn't leave him alone.
The new suit felt like a costume, the expensive cologne like a mask. And somewhere in the back of his mind, he could still hear Cassandra's gentle voice calling him darling.