Leah thought about going online to see if Colleen was there as she had been waiting for her to call all day, but she decided that she would cook a meal for her and Jeff as he had been at work all day and he wasn't home yet.

She went into the kitchen and pulled out a jar of sweet and sour sauce, some rice and she went to the fridge and got out some chicken breasts. She pulled the frying pan out of the draw and a saucepan for the rice. She grabbed the chopping board and began to cut the chicken into small pieces. She tossed them into the frying pan with the sauce and the put the rice in some water.

As the meal was cooking Leah set the table, got a few candles out and placed them around the table. She got out a bottle of wine and two glasses. She placed the wine in the fridge and stirred the chicken.

Leah looked at the clock. 9:20. She sighed and looked at the two plates of food that sat on the table. Jeff still wasn't home. She poured herself another glass of the chilled wine and gulped it down. The room was dark except from the four candles that where burning on the table in front if her. Leah's eyes moved from the clock to the door, as they had been doing for the past hour.

9:45. Leah had put the plates of food into the oven to keep them warm. She lent against the counter in the kitchen staring at the wall clock. She counted the seconds pass by. Leah poured the last of her wine into her glass.

Leah had waited for Jeff for over an hour and a half. She couldn't take it anymore. More tears flooded her eyes as they had done for the past twenty minutes. She had thrown the food that was ruined in the bin and she had dumped the plates and glasses in the sink.

She had gone to the bathroom taking her make up off and she let her curly brown hair down. She now Sat on the toilet seat and stared down at the razor that she had picked up from the bathroom cabinet.

As Jeff opened the door to the apartment and dumped his bag and closed the door, he looked over the dimly lit room. The candles nearly burnt out, the table set, the smell of Leah's perfume hung in the air. He walked slowly to the kitchen but Leah wasn't there. He walked to the bedroom and quietly opened the door expecting to see her in bed. But she wasn't there. He stood wondering where she could be but he then looked over at the bathroom door, which was shut. He walked to it and knocked on the door. Nothing. He knocked again and called out here name. He pressed his ear to the door. All he could hear was the sound of weak shaky breathing. His heart sank. He knew that there was only a flimsy lock on the door. His patience ran out, the pain in his chest increased as he could hear her but not get to her. He took a step back and ran at the door, forcing it to open. He froze as he looked at the semi-conscious Leah lying on the floor. He dropped to the floor beside her before he pulled her against him as she cried before her lifted her into his arms and out of the flat and into the car where he drove her to the hospital.

Chapter 7