Broken China
an excerpt

Four months into their relationship, and Delia had moved all of her stuff into Hemingway’s apartment. His things had been shoved out of the way to make room for her vanity, all of her makeup scattered across the bathroom sink anyway. Slinky dresses, short skirts, tight jeans, and a million different varieties of tops and t-shirts hung in his closet, his own clothes hung near the very back or folded neatly on the floor at the bottom. Designer shoes lay all over the place, some in their pairs and others solitary, glitter and scented candles and her stupid cat statuettes all over the place.

Hemingway absolutely loved it. He adored having Delia with him, loved coming home from work every day to make her dinner, loved watching her get ready in the mornings before he left. There was something so nice about sitting on the bed rubbing the sleep from his eyes while she sat at her vanity, meticulously brushing out her short hair, coifing it just perfect. He adored the way she shimmied her thin hips into her tight pants, standing around topless while she searched for the perfect shirt.

While she’d search for the right shoes, he’d take a quick shower and make her breakfast while his hair was still damp, amusing her with magic tricks. He explained to her about quidditch, and promised someday he would take her to Diagon Alley. When she’d eaten her congee and crullers, she’d head off to meetings at the agency or go-sees with designers, and Hemingway would clean up. He’d leave on foot for the academy, and return home usually far before she would, and they’d have a similar evening routine of dinner, listening to records, and smoking opiates from a hookah Hemingway had gotten as a gift when one of his friends had visited India.

Their life was, for the most part, rather mundane. They drank bottle after bottle of imported wine, laying on rugs spread across the hardwood floor, talking about anything and everything. Once a month Hemingway retreated to the basement of his parent’s home, and that was the only night Delia spent alone. The two became very much like one, sharing everything and anything, and then one red letter day, Delia brought home the thing that would eventually come between them.