09.02.2026
In response to Melissa’s challenge:
https://wp.me/pefeKf-4qA
After the Cup
The coffee cooled while the roses waited, their petals loosening like sighs. Pink hearts were scattered across the table—sweet, fragile things meant to be shared.
She sat alone, watching the foam collapse into itself, a pale circle where warmth had been. Love, she’d learned, behaved the same way if left untouched.
She picked up a heart and let it dissolve on her tongue.
Too sweet.
Almost painful.
When she stood to clear the table, she noticed it then:
the empty chair pulled slightly back,
as if someone had risen moments ago.
The coffee was cold.
The roses still fresh.
Some goodbyes arrive early.
Some stay just long enough
to make you believe they never left at all.
— Maggie
The Afterlove Voice 💫
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