Eli had been dating Natalie for five months. She was sweet. Smiled a lot. Laughed at his jokes, even the ones that didn’t deserve it. Her lips were soft, and her kisses were gentle. They went to the same university, shared mutual friends, even talked about taking a trip after finals. She was the kind of girl he should want.
But lately, every time he kissed her, he felt… nothing.
It started after she told him about her father.
“He works a lot,” she’d said. “Travels more than he stays home. Barely a parent, honestly.”
Eli had never met the man. Their schedules never aligned. Every time he was over at her place, her dad was gone. That’s how she liked it, she said.
Which made the moment Eli unlocked the front door with the spare key and stepped inside all the more jarring.
The house wasn
