Roulette of Hearts

Distractions

Mia sat at her desk, the morning sun streaming through the windows of her office. The usual buzz of the marketing department was drowned out by her thoughts, which were spinning faster than the deadlines on her calendar. Her fingers hovered over the keyboard, but instead of typing, she found herself replaying the previous night's events in her mind.

Daniel's words at the gallery had struck a chord deep within her. And that kiss on the cheek - simple, sweet, but so unexpectedly stirring. She could still feel the warmth where his lips had brushed her skin, and the memory made her heart skip a beat. But then there was Ethan, with his easy laugh and the way he could make her forget all her worries with just a joke. How could she choose between two incredible men?

She shook her head, trying to focus on the marketing proposal she needed to finish, but it was no use. Her mind was a whirl of emotions and memories. She hadn't exchanged numbers with any of the men yet, preferring to keep things casual until she was sure of her feelings. But now, the uncertainty was beginning to weigh on her.

By lunchtime, Mia's distraction had only grown. She decided to step out of the office for a bit of fresh air, hoping it would clear her mind. However, as she wandered down the street, her thoughts kept returning to Daniel. The way he had looked at her and the way he seemed to understand her on a deeper level.

As she walked back in the direction of her office, Mia sighed. The structure of the process was supposed to help make things easier, but now it felt like it was only complicating matters. She was supposed to be meeting Liam next. Her phoned with the notification of a date request with Liam and a reminder that the first elimination round is fast approaching. How was she supposed to make a decision when she feels like she hadn't even gotten to know all the men fully yet?

Mia tucked her phone back into her bag, a wave of anxiety creeping in. The first elimination was looming over her, and while she had formed connections with a few of the men, she still felt unsettled. She walked past a small café on the corner, and just for a second, she thought she saw a familiar figure sitting by the window working on his laptop.

She stopped in her tracks and gazed at the handsome man before, contemplating if to break the rules and just say hi. She was deep into her thoughts when a car horn brought her back to her senses. When she looked again, the man was looking at her staring awkwardly. It wasn't who she thought it was. It wasn't Ethan. They look similar to each other but Ethan eyes was much warmer. Shaking her head, she kept walking, her mind still playing tricks on her.

"Get it together, Mia," she muttered under her breath.

But the distraction didn't stop. As she crossed the street, the voice of another man shouting "Hey wait up" had her heart skip a beat. Looking back to see if the voice belong to Daniel she felt a wave of disappointment wash over her when she realized that the voice wasn't even calling out to her. Mia's mind was so preoccupied with the men that she was beginning to see them everywhere.

Sarah would be bubbled over laughing if she knew my predicaments Mia thought to herself. She sighed and continued her journey back to her office. She was so distracted that she didn't even realized she had walk so far.

Back at the office, she tried to focus on her work, but the distraction only deepened. Every time she glanced up, someone on the street below looked like one of the men - Liam, Julian, Noah - it was as if her mind was conjuring them up to mess with her. She wondered if this was a sign of her growing confusion, or maybe it was the pressure of the first elimination bearing down on her.

She pulled up her proposal draft, trying to find solace in the familiar task of work. The steady rhythm of typing usually calmed her, but today, it wasn't enough. Her thoughts kept spiraling, flitting from one man to the next, and she felt trapped between the connections she had made and the ones she had yet to discover.

The upcoming date with Liam felt heavy now. What if they didn't connect? What if they did, and it complicated things even more?

Her phone buzzed again, another reminder from the dating organization. It was like the universe was pushing her to decide when she wasn't ready. She wanted more time, more clarity. But the process didn't allow for that. Soon, she would have to make her first cut despite her inner turmoil. Rules were rules, and this was the path she had chosen.

Mia leaned back in her chair, staring out of the window at the bustling city below. People hurried by, caught up in their own lives, their own decisions, oblivious to the storm brewing in hers. She couldn't shake the feeling that distraction was leading her nowhere, just deeper into the tangled mess of emotions she was trying to avoid.

As the afternoon wore on, Mia finally accepted that clarity wasn't going to come today. There would be no easy answers, no sudden epiphanies. She would have to face the elimination round with the information she had, incomplete as it felt.

For now, all she could do was take things one step at a time. With new found hope she whipped out her phone and replied to Cupid's Chance: Request Approved.