“I heard you lost your apartment,” he continued. “I guess things haven’t been going well.”

“I’m managing.”

Bradley gave the soft, patronizing laugh Chloe remembered too well. During their three years together, he had corrected the way she sat, the way she laughed, the bread she ordered at restaurants, and the hours she spent helping her younger brother Danny.

He had called it encouragement. It had taken Chloe too long to understand that love did not make a person feel like a project that was constantly behind schedule.

“You used to be so disciplined,” Bradley said. “Early morning runs. Salads. That little fitness app you were obsessed with. What happened?”

The blonde woman stared at a tray of croissants, pretending not to listen. A year earlier, Bradley’s words would have sent Chloe home to count calories and study herself beneath unforgiving bathroom lights.

Today she only felt tired.

“Yes,” she said. “I gained some weight.”

“You should get back to the gym before it gets out of control. It’s a slippery slope.”

The cashier slid Chloe’s pastry across the counter. She picked up the warm paper bag. “Thanks for the advice.”

Bradley checked his watch, already losing interest. “Take care of yourself, Chloe.” He turned toward the blonde woman as if Chloe had ceased to exist.

She walked out into the rain. The cold wind cut through her jeans as she leaned against the bakery’s brick wall. She took one bite of the Danish, but it tasted like paper.