She was so caught up in her thoughts, eyes fixed on the ground, her mind spinning, that she wasn't paying attention to where she was stepping.
And on one of the steps, her foot slipped.
Mary lost her balance and pitched forward, her stomach lurching as she felt herself falling.
But before she could hit the steps, a pair of arms caught her firmly, stopping her fall at the last instant.
"…Huh?"
Mary looked up, dazed, to see who had saved her.
And her heart stopped.
It was Mark.
"You okay?" he asked, helping her regain her balance. "Quite the slip there. Gotta be careful with these stairs, they're always damp. You didn't hurt yourself?"
She stared at him in silence, completely unable to answer.
Mark was always like this.
That way of his, worrying about other people without expecting anything in return, even when he barely knew them.
The same kindness he'd shown her that first night in the rain.
And that made the guilt unbearable.
