Free Goddesses Don't Get Sick by Victoria Bauld Page B

do is walk away from me? What do you mean this has nothing to do with your feelings? I’m not asking for how your boss feels about this, or if you have a brother who might be interested, I’m asking you ! I love you, Tuyen!” Angela’s voice broke then, and she choked back a sob. “Do I really mean that little to you?”
    “No, Ange, don’t,” Tuyen pleaded as Angela began to cry. He stepped forward and tried to pull her into a hug, but she pushed him off, turning her back to him.
    “Angela, please,” he stood awkwardly behind her before reaching hesitantly for her shoulder. “You know you mean a lot to me, but-”
    “But what?” Angela slapped the hand away and rounded on Tuyen, the look in her eyes driving him back a step. “ What , Tuyen? You only see me as a friend? You like me but you don’t want to be with me? If I mean so fucking much to you, then why are you being like this?”
    Tuyen stood with his head down, unable to meet Angela’s eyes. Rubbing the back of his neck uneasily, he began to speak slowly, faltering.
    “I do like you Angela. More than like. I…” he swallowed nervously before continuing. “I love you, Goddess…but…”
    “But you can’t let me interfere with your work?” Angela shivered in the cold and hugged her arms, trying to stop the tears that continued to roll down her cheeks even as her heart wrenched at Tuyen’s admittance. “Is your work really that important to you? Couldn’t you try taking a break from it? Quitting it for a little while?”
    “You want me to quit my job?” Tuyen repeated the words as if they were in another language, blank confusion written across his face.
    “Why not? It’s like I told you in the restaurant, Tuyen; I could work for us, and we could maybe get a small place together, or something, and…” Angela trailed off as Tuyen began to shake his head unhappily.
    “I can’t, Ange. I thought you knew that.” He barked a bitter laugh, still shaking his head. “You don’t think the thought never crossed my mind? I love you, Angela. But this isn’t about my feelings, as much as I would like them to be.”
    “What else could it be about?” Angela grabbed Tuyen and forced him to look at her, nails digging into his forearms through the suit. “What hold does this damned job have on you that you can’t even kiss a girl without panicking?!”
    “It’s not that simple, Angela.” Tuyen looked for a moment as if he was going to say something further, but seemed to change his mind. Angela’s grip tightened, and she tried weakly to shake him.
    “Well explain it to me, then! Because clearly I’m missing something.”
    Sighing, Tuyen gently disengaged Angela’s hold on his arms, before clasping her shoulders gently.
    “You really want to know?” He asked softly, his eyes hidden behind a lock of his hair.
    “Yes, Tuyen!” Angela fought back another sob, her upset adding a sarcastic edge to her voice. “I really want to know why the most amazing man I’ve ever met is turning me down because of his job .”
    Tuyen’s hands caressed Angela’s arms for a brief moment, before he gently released her and stepped back, head bowed.
    “I’m sorry I never told you this before,” he murmured, not looking at her.
    “Told me what?” Angela tried to catch his eye, before reaching out to touch his shoulder. “Told me what, Tuyen?” She repeated softly, suddenly—inexplicably—nervous. Avoiding her touch, Tuyen bit his lip and closed his eyes.
    “Wait here,” he said, stepping back until he was out of the circle of light that the streetlamp cast. Angela waited, alone in the light; curiosity and fear mingling in her gut as she tried to make out Tuyen’s form in the darkness.
    She heard a faint rustling sound; a sound that reminded Angela of a score of things, but nothing she could place. The kind of noise one recalls from a misplaced childhood memory. After what seemed like forever, she heard his voice come out from the