Another Way to Fall by Amanda Brooke

answer to that but I didn’t want to dwell on my humiliation or admit to the extent of my foolishness. I had been gullible and naive, words that I had never expected to associate myself with. ‘Perhaps I had more confidence in Alex than he deserved,’ I told her.
    ‘Perhaps you didn’t have enough confidence in yourself,’ corrected Kate. ‘You’re on your own now, I can’t tell you otherwise, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing. True, you have no-one to share your life with, no-one else’s expectations to live up to, but you also have no-one to let down. No-one except yourself.’
    ‘And you,’ I reminded her.
    We were in a boardroom on the top floor of a building tall enough to not only scrape the sky but to pierce the atmosphere. The sun felt stronger and its rays streamed across the room, sending the shadows scuttling away into the deepest corners. The view took in the width of Central Park with its seamless layer of treetops, a tangle of paths and the glint of a lake in the distance. But I wasn’t there for the view. My full attention was given to the series of files on the table. They may not have been glittering boxes lovingly prepared by the kindly shopkeeper, but they were still glorious in my eyes. A curve of brightly coloured folders, spread out like a rainbow before me, each one holding the promise of adventure. Kate stood beside me.
    ‘Yes, and me,’ she agreed. ‘Which is why I’m giving you your choice of assignment. This is where the rest of your life begins, Emma. Choose well.’
    The city centre was bustling with Christmas shoppers as Emma waited for Ben outside the museum. The decision to accept his invitation had been easy in the end. She needed to escape, not only the four walls of her bedroom but the fears that festered inside her head. Her future was uncertain and she didn’t know who she could count on to be there to the bitter end. Alex had been the first casualty but there would be others who would distance themselves when the going got tough. That made the offers from those who wanted to step closer to her all the more precious but she didn’t want more disappointments in her life, she reminded herself. She would have to tread carefully.
    Emma stomped her feet to keep warm and looked up the steep stone steps that led to the original entrance to the museum. She could remember climbing those steps with her dad, gripping his hand tightly. Colossal columns stood guard on each side of the huge main doors, which had seemed tall enough for giants and she could remember as a little girl feeling very small and quite terrified. Nerves tickled her insides now and she wasn’t sure why. Her emotions were in flux. She was still reeling from the news of her diagnosis, and the drugs she had to take only contributed to her constant mood swings. There was the emotional fallout from her breakup with Alex to deal with. And now there were her feelings for …
    ‘Looking for me?’
    She hadn’t noticed him walking towards her; she realized she had been looking out for someone in chef’s whites. Ben was as particular about his appearance as he was about his food in the kitchen. He may only have been wearing jeans and T-shirt beneath his winter jacket but it was a perfectly co-ordinated casual look that had taken time and effort.
    As they walked towards the new entrance at the side of the building, Emma couldn’t quite shake her nerves. It was still early morning and they practically had the place to themselves. She felt obliged to sneak into the building but the heels of her boots clicked harshly against the atrium’s stone floor, loudly announcing their arrival. Emma tried to keep her weight on the balls of her feet and managed a few steps without making a sound but then Ben stopped her in her tracks.
    He looked completely bemused. ‘What are you doing?’ he asked.
    ‘It’s alright for you, you’re wearing trainers,’ Emma whispered.
    Ben laughed softly. ‘We are allowed to be here.