Asher sat silently in his mansion while he waited for Juliet to return from the party. Guilt and regret inched closer, and closer to his heart. He began to hate himself more and more. She won't come home after what I did… He thought to himself.
He slowly stood up, his guilt weighing him down. He walked over to the bar and grabbed the bottle of whiskey. He didn't dare grab a glass, like he didn't dare care about the consequences. He took one long swallow. Then another.
The burn never caught up to him. He was too angry with himself to feel the fire burning down his throat. "She's not coming back tonight. Not ever again." He told himself.
He walked over to Juliet's door and opened it. The room was empty of life. He walked over to her desk and picked up the manuscript. He read the pages over and over again. He walked over to her bed, manuscript and whiskey still in his hands. He sat down and closed his eyes.
The door opened again and Juliet walked in. She froze in the doorway when she saw him on her bed.
Asher opened his eyes and stood up again. He put the manuscript on her bedside table and walked over to her. "Juliet," He reached to brush a strand of hair out of her face but she flinched away from his hand. He let out a sigh of regret and pain. "Juliet, I'm sorry about earlier… I was just so frustrated. I didn't mean to scare you. And I sure didn't mean to hurt you."
She looked up at him, fear still lingering in her gaze. "Frustration doesn't give you a reason to corner me." She said quietly.
"I know… And I'm so, so sorry. Just, please, let me make it up to you."
"I know you didn't mean to hurt me, but you still did. I'm going to need more than an apology to forgive you. And some space…"
Asher nodded despite his chest tightening. He let out a shaky breath, as if it was his last. He walked over to the door, his grip tightened on the half empty whisky bottle. "I'll be in my room if you need anything." He said as he walked out. He closed the door behind him but didn't move away. He sat down in the hall, his back against her door as he drank and drank.
Unaware of Asher outside, drinking himself nearly comatose. She walked over to her desk and pulled out a diary and opened it to the first empty page. "Dear diary, it's me again…" She started and finished with, "I'm not sure if distance will fix what broke, but it might help me hear my own thoughts again".
As she wrote and he drank, the space between them was quiet but absolute.