Evening on the Balcony

Cicadas buzzed, their grinding screech flooding the evening, as the sun went down. The inflammation of sound would fade soon after the light. Robin sat on the balcony, next to a trim fire flickering from the fire table. She shivered slightly when the wind blew. It was brisk but that made her feel alive. Lately, she felt alone and was not sleeping. Paranoia was seeping into the edges of her mind, causing her to wonder who was her friend, who was telling the truth, and what was it all for. She curled a strand of hair around her finger and sipped at her gin and tonic. Her last boyfriend, Martin, had loved the drink. Eventually she gave in and tried it out of desperation. He was right, and that bothered her, because she wanted him to be wrong so badly. She blamed herself for the downward spiral of their relationship even though he had been seeing his ex-wife for months on the side. Or was she the side; it was undetermined.