Category: English

When I opened my eyes, the air felt different—thicker, colder, and smelling faintly of cheap floral perfume and hairspray. I realized with a jolt that I was back. I was back on the day that had dismantled my life. It was the afternoon of my cousin Tiffany’s wedding. Earlier that day, during the reception, I had managed to snag several party favors—little gold envelopes tucked into the centerpieces. In this small, judgmental town, these were the “lucky” favors Tiffany’s new husband had boasted about: scratch-off lottery tickets. No one could have guessed that one of those tickets was a ten-million-dollar winner. In my first life, I had run home, breathless and sobbing with joy, wanting to tell my mother the news. My father’s stomach cancer had just been diagnosed; we were drowning in debt. This money meant he could finally get the surgery he needed in the city. It was a miracle. But my mother’s reaction had been a bucket of ice water to the face. She didn’t celebrate. She didn’t cry in relief. Instead, her face hardened into that familiar mask of stony “decency.” She snatched the ticket from my hand, insisting it belonged to Tiffany. “We are honest, hardworking people, Julie,” she had lectured, her voice vibrating with a terrifying kind of pride. “The poor must have dignity. We don’t take advantage of family. We don’t steal luck that isn’t ours.” I remembered the aftermath with excruciating clarity. My father died six months later in a cramped, humid bedroom. My mother, while trying to walk the neighborhood’s “village idiot” back to his house to prove what a good neighbor she was, was struck by a car. She survived, but she was permanently disabled. The relatives who had praised her “noble heart” brought over a few cartons of eggs and some “thoughts and prayers,” but they never mentioned the mountain of medical debt we owed. Left with nothing, my mother turned her desperation into a weapon against me. She tore up my university acceptance letter. Then, she drugged my dinner with sedatives, hoping to marry me off to the neighbor’s son—a man with the mind of a child and a family with enough “bride price” money to solve her problems. “Don’t blame me, Julie,” she’d whispered, her eyes brimming with calculated tears as I drifted into unconsciousness. “Blame the world. People are cruel, and money is the root of all evil. A mother has to do what she has to do…” In the end, unable to endure the suffocating shame, I had stepped off the roof of a six-story building. … “Seriously? You’re sure the winning ticket was from the favors at the reception?” “Positive. The clerk at the gas station said Derek bought two hundred tickets there right before the rehearsal dinner.”f The voice on the other end of the phone sighed heavily. It was my Aunt Linda. “Ugh, if I’d known, I would have told them to just put two-dollar bills in those envelopes. Ten million dollars… God, I just hope whoever got it has enough of a conscience to bring it back to Tiffany!” My mother was at the stove, the phone on speaker. She hummed in sympathy as she stirred a pot of thin soup, her brow furrowed as she cursed the “ungrateful” guest who was probably hiding the ticket right now. The ticket. My pupils contracted. The phantom sensation of being dragged across a carpet by a man twice my size flared in my nerves. The sound of my own skull cracking against the pavement—a wet, sickening thud—echoed in my ears. I gasped for air, my right hand clenching instinctively. I looked down. My knuckles were white, gripping the cold brass handle of my bedroom door. This wasn’t a dream. This was the morning after the wedding. In my previous life, I thought I was having a run of bad luck. I’d tripped on the porch coming home from the reception and spent the afternoon nursing a bruised hip. But it was that very day that I’d realized I held the golden ticket. And it was that day my mother had marched me to Tiffany’s house to hand over our future. “We’re poor, but we have our souls,” she had said. A sharp, rhythmic banging started at my door. “Julie? You grabbed some of those envelopes, didn’t you? Open them up! Let’s see if you’re the one holding onto Tiffany’s luck.” My mother’s voice was sharp with a sudden, opportunistic “integrity.” I heard her heels clicking toward the door. A wave of cold fury washed over me. I had one goal: She could never, ever know that I had the ticket. I turned the lock. I fumbled with the pockets of my jacket, pulling out seven small envelopes. I found it—the one with the specific serial number etched into my brain. I pulled up the lottery results on my phone. The numbers matched perfectly. I checked them once, twice, three times. Then, I slid the winning ticket into the pages of an old, dusty textbook at the bottom of my shelf. I took a deep breath, messed up my hair to look like I’d been sleeping, and opened the door. My mother looked ready to break the door down. Her face was a map of righteous anxiety. “What are you doing in here? Sleeping the day away while your cousin is in a crisis?” she snapped, looking me over with disdain. “Locking the door in the middle of the day… you’re becoming so secretive. I can’t rely on you for anything.” Her eyes darted to my desk, landing on the pile of candy and envelopes. “Did you win anything?” she asked, her voice dropping into a probe. I picked up a hairbrush and shrugged. “I haven’t even looked.” “Well, look now! Your aunt said there’s a massive winner out there. Tiffany and Derek are practically camped out at the lottery office waiting to see who shows up. If you have it, we need to get it back to her immediately. She’s family, Julie. Don’t let her suffer.” In my old life, I would have argued. I would have said that a gift is a gift, and if Tiffany wanted the money, she shouldn’t have given the tickets away. But I knew better now. You can’t argue with a martyr. I grabbed the remaining six losing envelopes and headed for the door. “Where are you going?” she yelled. “To the gas station to check them!” I called back. My mother didn’t know how to use the lottery app. She didn’t understand that a jackpot this big couldn’t be claimed at a local convenience store anyway. “If you won, you give it back!” she shouted after me. “Don’t be a thief! Honesty is the only thing we own!” When I got to the station, Tiffany and Derek were there, looking disheveled. Tiffany was still wearing her white silk rehearsal wrap with a fur stole, looking wildly out of place. She was accosting anyone who looked like they’d been at the wedding. When she saw me, her eyes lit up with a predatory hunger. She grabbed my arm, her nails digging into my skin. “Julie! Why are you here? Did you win? Tell me you won!” I gently pried her hand off. I looked her dead in the eye and gave her a bright, vacant smile. “I did! I’m here to claim it!” Tiffany’s face went pale, then red. She snatched the stack of envelopes out of my hand before I could stop her. She tore through them until she found the one I’d left on top—the one that had won exactly one hundred dollars. Her face fell. “This? This is all?” “Yeah!” I chirped, acting thrilled. “A hundred bucks! Can you believe it? That’s like a week of groceries!” I took the ticket back, scanned it, and pocketed the cash. I made a show of tossing the other losing tickets into the trash can. “What are you guys doing here, anyway?” I asked innocently. Tiffany didn’t even answer. She turned away, scanning the parking lot for her next victim. I walked away, my heart hammering against my ribs. Stage one was complete. They wouldn’t suspect me for a while. Now, I just had to get to the city. On my way home, a hand dropped onto my shoulder. I nearly jumped out of my skin. “Hey, kiddo. Look what I got you.” I turned to see my father. His face was sallow, a yellowish tint to his skin that made my throat ache. He was smiling, though his lips were pale. He had been sick for a month, and we hadn’t even raised half the money for his initial consultations. He pointed to a suitcase on the sidewalk. It was a soft rose-pink, hardshell, with spinning wheels. It looked expensive—too expensive for a man who was skipping meals to pay for “stomach medicine” that was really just antacids. My eyes blurred with tears. In my previous life, my mother had forced me to hand over the ten million. Tiffany had done a fake little dance of “Oh, but your father is so sick, are you sure?” And my mother had waved her off. “Everyone has their cross to bear. We aren’t going to use your good fortune to fix our problems.” Tiffany had pocketed the ticket and never looked back. When we finally went to her to beg for a loan a month later, she’d looked at us with “pity” and said, “I’d love to, Aunt Bethany, but with Julie starting school and your husband’s condition… I’d never see that money again. It would be like throwing it down a drain.” That was the day my father—the strongest man I knew—wiped away a tear and told us, “Stop. No more doctors. I’m done.” Now, looking at the pink suitcase, I realized he had spent his secret savings to make sure I went to college in style. “Dad…” I choked out. “It’s not much,” he said, rubbing his hands together nervously. “But the guy at the store said all the girls at the university use these now. It’ll last you years.” I didn’t scold him for the money. I just grabbed the handle and hugged him. “It’s perfect, Dad. Let’s go home.” Back at the house, my mother eyed the suitcase with a scowl. “Wasteful,” she muttered. “Your Aunt Linda gave me that old black duffel bag Tiffany used. It’s a bit dusty, but I could have fixed the zipper. Why spend money on vanity?” My father smiled sheepishly. “It wasn’t that much, Beth. Only about sixty dollars. It’s an investment.” My mother groaned at the “extravagance,” but since the money was already spent, she just went back to the kitchen. During dinner, I pushed a piece of broccoli around my plate and said as casually as possible, “Dad, I want you to drive me to campus tomorrow. It’s my first year, and I don’t want to take the bus with all this luggage. Plus, the city is dangerous. I’d feel better if you were there.” My father nodded immediately. “Of course. A-State is far. You shouldn’t be wandering around alone.” My mother slammed her fork down. “She’s nineteen! She needs to be independent. And why tomorrow? Move-in isn’t for another two weeks.” My heart sped up. In my last life, I had stayed behind to help her, and that delay had cost my father his life. “They sent an email,” I lied, holding up my phone screen too far away for her to read. “Orientation and early seminars start this week. I just saw it today. I have to go.” My mother looked at me suspiciously. “Your father isn’t well. I should go. I’ve never even seen the city.” She shot my father a look of pure resentment. “I married a man who can’t even take me on a vacation. My life is just one long struggle.” My father looked down at his plate, the light leaving his eyes. “Mom, I’d love for you to come,” I said, my voice sweet as honey, “but I saw Billy wandering around near the guitar factory today. He looked totally lost. You know his mom relies on you to watch out for him. If you leave for two days, who knows where that poor boy will end up?” Billy was the “neighborhood project” my mother used to bolster her reputation as a saint. Just last week, she’d stayed up all night finding him after he’d wandered off. She loved the way the neighbors whispered about her “golden heart.” My mother hesitated. She looked at the plate of cookies a neighbor had brought over as a “thank you” for her kindness. She sighed, a martyr’s smile touching her lips. “True. If that poor soul wanders off and gets hurt, I’d never forgive myself. Everyone knows I’m the only one he trusts.” She waved a hand dismissively. “Fine. Let your father go. I’m just a pack mule anyway.” The next morning, my father and I stood by the road with the pink suitcase. The November air was biting, but my palms were sweaty with anticipation. Just get to the city. Claim the ticket. Get the surgery. But before the bus arrived, two figures appeared, walking quickly toward us. It was Tiffany and Aunt Linda. They weren’t just walking; they were nearly running. My stomach dropped. I gripped the handle of my suitcase. “Julie! You’re leaving already?” Aunt Linda called out. Her smile didn’t reach her eyes, which were fixed on my luggage. “Yeah,” I said, trying to sound normal. “It’s a long trip. I want to get there before dark.” Tiffany looked like a ghost. Her eyes were sunken, dark circles weighing them down. She wasn’t even looking at me; she was staring at my suitcase like she could see through the plastic. “Tiffany, shouldn’t you be on your honeymoon?” I asked. She didn’t answer. She stepped forward and grabbed the handle of my suitcase, trying to pull it toward her. “Wait,” she said, her voice raspy. “My mom and Aunt Bethany were talking. They said it’s weird you’re leaving so early. Almost like… like you’re running away.” “I’m going to school, Tiffany,” I said, holding on tight. “If you have nothing to hide,” Tiffany snapped, her facade finally cracking, “then you won’t mind if we check your things. My ten-million-dollar ticket is missing, Julie. And suddenly you’re rushing off to the city?” “This is insane,” I said, looking to my father for help. But then, my mother appeared from around the corner of the house. She walked up and put a heavy hand on my shoulder. “I called them,” my mother said, her voice cold. “Tiffany has been crying all night. It’s only fair, Julie. If you’re innocent, you have nothing to fear. We are honest people. We don’t leave town with shadows over our names.” She nodded to Tiffany. “Go ahead. Check it.”

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Piper always lived under the delusion that I was a trophy she’d managed to snatch from someone else’s hands through sheer, calculated manipulation. What was truly exhausting, though, was her attempt to goad her best friend—the “one who got away” in her own twisted narrative, Isabel—into trying to steal me, too. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” she had told Isabel back then. I remember the smugness in her voice. “Back when he was single, girls were practically tripping over themselves to get near him. Now? It’s just him and his girlfriend. There’s no competition.” She paused, taking a slow sip of her wine. “Love is a game of skill, Isabel. If you’ve got the moves, you take the throne. If you don’t, you bow out gracefully.” The very next day, I received a DM from Isabel. Attached was a photo. “I heard you don’t give the time of day to girls without a toned core,” the message read. In the photo, she was pulling up her workout top to reveal a razor-sharp six-pack. “I’ve got the abs. Can I get a reply now?” I was hovering my thumb over the screen, ready to type out a polite but firm rejection, when my vision suddenly flickered. Strange, translucent lines of text—like a live-stream chat—began scrolling across the air in front of me. [Ugh, this side character… just cheat already!] one comment read. [If it weren’t for you blocking the way, the Male Lead could have been rescued by the Heroine ages ago. He wouldn’t have to suffer in the slums.] Another followed immediately: [The Heroine is only staying with this loser because she’s afraid if they break up, he’ll go back to bullying the Male Lead. She’s literally praying he’ll hook up with the side-chick so she can be free.] Then came one that chilled me to the bone: [Stop hating on him. If this guy doesn’t break up with her soon, he’s slated for the ‘tragic ending.’ Once the Heroine and Male Lead finally get together, he’s going to get kidnapped, assaulted, and eventually die of a terminal illness in a gutter.] I froze. My heart hammered against my ribs. Without a second thought, I called Piper, ended things right then and there, and accepted Isabel’s invitation. But I’d barely finished moving my boxes into Isabel’s penthouse before Piper showed up at her sister-friend’s door, brandishing a kitchen knife. “You used every dirty trick I taught you against me!” Piper screamed, her voice cracking with a manic edge. “I taught you how to steal from others, you bitch! I didn’t tell you to steal from me!” 1 I had just finished unpacking the last of my suitcases when I heard the commotion outside. Piper was standing in the driveway, shrieking insults at her “best friend,” her face contorted with rage. Fearing things were about to turn bloody, I stepped between them, my hands raised in a gesture of forced calm. “Piper, stop it,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady. “Can you please just stop making a scene?” Piper looked like she was vibrating with lethal intent. But as soon as I spoke, the fire in her eyes died down, replaced by a haunting, glassy red. “Stop making a scene?” she whispered. “Is that what you think this is?” She took a step closer, her breath hitching. “I was a fool. I sat there like a total idiot, coaching that snake on how to seduce a man, never imagining she was practicing her lines for you.” Her voice broke into a sob. “Parker, she took everything. She took my pride, she took my life, and she took you. Can’t you see how much I’m hurting? Please, just… come home with me.” She became increasingly hysterical, the knife in her hand trembling so violently I thought she might drop it on her own foot. She reached out with her free hand, tracing the line of my arm until her fingers locked with mine. For a split second, my heart softened. I opened my mouth to offer some kind of explanation, some comfort—but then the glitches returned. [Wait, is this side character actually falling for this? Does he really think she wants him back out of love?] [Don’t be so full of yourself. The Heroine is just testing to see if you’re actually gone for good. She needs to make sure you won’t come crawling back to haunt her once she’s finally with her ‘True Soulmate.’] [Gotta hand it to her, the crying is top-tier. The ‘devastated ex’ act almost fooled me, too. Perfect performance.] [Alright, wrap up the melodrama. Why is he still holding her hand? Can’t he see the Heroine is literally cringing inside? Look at her eyebrows—she’s disgusted.] I looked at Piper. She was practically on her knees, her face a mask of Shakespearean tragedy. Was it all just a script? My hand jerked back as if I’d touched a live wire. I tore my fingers away from hers. She looked up, startled. A fresh layer of mist coated her eyes. Here we go again, I thought. The waterworks. I looked away, my voice turning cold and flat. “We’re done, Piper. Please. Stop haunting my life.” I didn’t wait for her to respond. I grabbed Isabel’s hand and pulled her toward the house. Behind us, the clouds broke. A sudden, torrential downpour began to lash the pavement. Through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the second-floor living room, I looked down. Piper was still there, standing exactly where I’d left her, soaked to the bone and motionless. “Feeling guilty?” Isabel asked. Her tone was a cocktail of mockery and comfort, with a twist of something I couldn’t quite place. “I can have the housekeeper call her a car if you want.” I shook my head. Ever since I realized I was just a “disposable male lead”—a plot device destined for a gruesome end—I had started suffocating the feelings I had for Piper. I couldn’t let them grow. I was terrified of the point of no return. Maybe our entire relationship had been a glitch from the start. When I was going through a messy breakup with my previous ex, Piper had played the part of the “supportive friend” for months. She handled the drama, dealt with the toxic fallout, and was the shoulder I cried on. When she finally asked to be with me, I hesitated. It felt too soon. She accepted my rejection with such grace, such quiet patience, that I found myself drawn to her. I fell for that image of the calm, restrained woman who knew how to hold space for someone. Then, the moment we went official, the mask shattered. She became a “velvet handcuffs” kind of girlfriend. Obsessive. Clingy. She monitored my every move. If I came home late, she cried. If I missed a text, she cried. If I didn’t hold her in my sleep, she cried. As a low-energy person, the constant emotional labor of “fixing” her moods had drained me to the husk. Now that the burden was gone, I should have been ecstatic. A warm hand slid over the back of mine. Isabel. She smiled. Unlike Piper’s performative warmth, Isabel’s composure felt like something forged in the fires of experience. It was solid. Unshakable. “I honestly don’t mind,” she said softly, “if you just want to use me as a rebound. Or a distraction.” I looked at her. Her face bore no resemblance to Piper’s. I thought to myself: Maybe this is what I need. Someone older, someone who can lead, someone who doesn’t need me to be her entire world. 2 [This guy is such a sucker for any woman who gives him the time of day. Does he really think a high-flying CEO like Isabel would actually fall for a loser side-character like him?] [I don’t know where he gets the confidence. This is a Male-Oriented trope world; every woman is eventually going to gravitate toward the ‘Male Lead.’ Parker, just accept you’re a placeholder!] The heart that had just begun to beat again felt like it was flatlining. Was everyone in my life just playing a game? I didn’t notice Isabel’s eyes locked on my face. Within a second, my expression had curdled. She squeezed my hand, her voice suddenly laced with an odd, sharp anxiety. “What is it? Is it the house? Do you hate the decor?” I didn’t understand what act she was playing now. I quietly pulled my hand away. “I’m fine. Just tired. I’m going to go lie down.” The next morning, I walked downstairs to find Isabel fumbling around the kitchen. She was trying to wash vegetables, but she’d somehow managed to spray water everywhere. Her silk blouse was damp, clinging to her skin. Her hair was matted in wet strands against her forehead. I watched a single bead of water trace a path down her neck, past the subtle rhythm of her throat, disappearing into the shadows of her collar. Beneath the translucent wet fabric, the sharp lines of her physique were unmistakable. Before I could look away, she spoke. “I… I might not be as good a cook as Piper,” she said, her voice uncharacteristically small. “But I’m a fast learner.” [Classic female competition!] the text scrolled by. [The Alpha Female can’t stand losing to the younger girl in any category. She’s using the side-character as a lab rat for her cooking.] [Parker is only getting this treatment because the ‘Male Lead’ isn’t available yet. Otherwise, why would a woman like Isabel ever step into a kitchen for a nobody like him?] I looked away, my voice colder than I intended. “You don’t need to cook for me.” Isabel looked stricken. She opened her mouth to argue, but my phone rang. It was my assistant, sounding frantic. “Boss, the corporate seal is missing. We just landed that massive tech contract and we need it for the filing immediately!” Panic flared, overriding my personal drama. I tore through my luggage, but it wasn’t there. It had to be at the house. At Piper’s. I checked the time. She should have been at work by now. I figured I’d let myself in, grab it, and be out in five minutes. I walked into the home office with practiced ease and yanked open the drawer. Empty. I frowned, wondering if I’d misremembered, when a low, raspy voice came from behind me. “Don’t bother. I hid it.” I spun around. Piper was standing in the doorway, her eyes bloodshot, looking like she hadn’t slept in forty-eight hours. The harsh words I had prepared died in my throat. I forced myself to look at her palm instead of her face. “Give it back, Piper.” She lunged forward, grabbing my wrists and pinning them behind my back before I could react. She hauled me into her chest, her grip like iron. “Move back in,” she whispered into the crook of my neck. “Move back in, and I’ll give it to you right now.” Her skin was unnaturally hot. She pressed her face against mine, her nose brushing mine in a desperate, fleeting mimicry of affection. She leaned in to kiss me, but I jerked my head away. I felt a sharp sting on my neck—she’d bitten me. She began to sob, the hot tears soaking into my collarbone. “I’m sorry,” she choked out. “I should have listened. I shouldn’t have tried to play games with Isabel. I didn’t think she’d actually take you.” “Can’t we just go back? I’ll be whatever you want. I’ll be the quiet little girlfriend. Just don’t leave me.” [Is he actually moved by this? Can’t he hear the subtext? She’s basically calling him a ‘cheater’ who likes playing both sides.] [Seriously, a guy this messy deserves the ‘tragic ending.’ It’s not an accident; it’s karma.] [Wait until he finds out the ‘Male Lead’ just got hired as Piper’s new personal assistant. The office romance is about to start!] I let out a sharp, bitter laugh. Almost fell for it again. These two “sisters” were both Oscar-caliber actresses. I gritted my teeth and brought my heel down hard on her foot. She gasped, her grip loosening for a split second, and I bolted for the door. She stumbled, then scrambled after me, literally sliding across the hardwood to block my path. “Parker, you can’t go!” she cried, clutching my knees as she knelt on the floor. I rubbed my temples, my patience finally snapping. “We are broken up, Piper. Give me one good reason why I should stay.” She looked frantic, sweat beading on her forehead. Then, a strange glint appeared in her eyes. She looked up at me, her expression suddenly, terrifyingly firm. “I’m pregnant,” she said. “You can’t abandon the mother of your child.” Me: What? The screen: [???] 3 I stared at her flat stomach, my mind racing through the timeline, trying to calculate the odds. She saw the doubt in my eyes. Standing up and using the hallway table for support, she reached back and pulled her silk nightshirt over her head in one fluid motion. I didn’t have time to look away. My eyes landed on the soft curves of her torso, her chest rising and falling rapidly in the dim hallway light. A small, triumphant smile touched her lips. She took my hand and pressed my fingertips against her lower abdomen. Her skin was smooth, tensing and then relaxing under my touch. “Feel that, baby?” she whispered. Before I could pull away, her other hand hooked around the back of my neck. She pulled me down and kissed me with a desperate, unyielding hunger. [False alarm. She’s not pregnant, she’s just thirsty.] [Well, she is the Heroine. That body is basically the gold standard for this genre.] [Obviously. Why do you think she’s kissing the side-character now? She knows things are going to get ‘intense’ once the Male Lead takes over, and she wants to get it out of her system.] [Heartbreaking. She’s using Parker as an outlet while saving her ‘pure soul’ for the Male Lead.] I felt a surge of humiliated rage. I bit her lip hard—hard enough that the metallic taste of blood filled our mouths. She let out a low, breathless laugh and pinned me against the wall, her arms boxing me in. She opened her mouth to say something—something meant to be seductive, no doubt—but I glared at her with everything I had. Then, I dropped low, ducked under her arm, and sprinted out the door. Piper: …What? The screen: [Rare. The side-character actually rejected her?] [Just a ‘hard to get’ tactic. He’ll be back.] [Now that she’s confirmed he’s ‘playing hard to get,’ she can finally focus on her new assistant. Get ready for the sparks!] I ignored the voices. I spent the next hour on the phone with my lawyer and my secretary, figuring out how to bypass the missing seal. When I got to the office, I saw Isabel standing by the floor-to-ceiling windows. The morning sun framed her in gold. She was listening to a consultant, looking every bit the power player. She caught my eye and gave a small, subtle nod. I put on my “professional” mask and joined the meeting. Between her influence and my negotiation, the contract was saved. I thought she’d leave once the business was done. Instead, she stayed. She sat in my office, watching me work. I started to wonder what her angle was. Then the text appeared: [The ‘Alpha Female’ is so calculated. She knows the Male Lead wants to be a CEO. She’s scouting Parker’s company so she can short the stock and buy it out as a gift for her future man.] My heart did a painful somersault. You can mess with my feelings, but messing with my life’s work? That’s where I draw the line. Trying to stay polite given her stature, I cleared my throat. “Isabel, don’t you have a multi-billion dollar empire to run?” She bit her lip, standing up to button her blazer. She looked… hurt? “Right. I’ll get out of your hair. Call me if you need anything.” I nodded. I’d sooner call a debt collector, I thought. By the time I finished work, I was exhausted. I drove into my parking garage, but I found myself paralyzed by the thought of going upstairs. I didn’t want to see Isabel. I didn’t want to see anyone. I sat in the dark car, browsing Zillow. I needed a new place. Something temporary, something mine. I found a listing for a vacant condo nearby and messaged my assistant to buy it immediately. Relieved at the prospect of an escape, I finally went upstairs to pack my things. Of course, I ran into Isabel at the door. She didn’t say anything, and I wasn’t in the mood to pretend. But when I opened the door, I froze. There was Piper. She was wearing a Hello Kitty apron, standing in the foyer like a 1950s housewife. “Welcome home,” she said. “Dinner’s ready, sis. You too, Parker. Wash up.” Piper had this eerie, Stepford-wife smile plastered on her face. It was deeply unsettling. 4 Isabel’s brow furrowed, her voice dropping to a glacial temperature. “Last time you had a knife. What is it this time? Poison in the risotto?” Piper’s smile twitched, a tiny crack appearing in her mask. “Hardly. I wouldn’t risk harming Parker just to get rid of you.” Isabel’s patience evaporated. “What are you doing here, Piper?” “Don’t worry,” Piper chirped, regaining her composure. “I’m not here to break you two up. I’m here to… join the party.” She didn’t wait for an answer. She sat down at the dining table and started eating, as if to prove the food was safe. She was right; she had no reason to poison us. She was just playing the long game, testing my resolve. Back at her house, I’d been clear, and she knew the “Male Lead” was already in her orbit. This was just a spat between “sisters.” I was drained. I sat at the far end of the table, as far from Piper as possible. Isabel took the seat next to me. Immediately, Piper grabbed her bowl and slid into the chair on my other side. Isabel put a piece of sea bass on my plate. Piper’s chopsticks followed instantly, dropping a glazed rib into my bowl. “Eat up, Parker,” she cooed, her voice so syrupy it made my skin crawl. I hadn’t even picked up my fork when Isabel grabbed the arm of my chair and pulled it half an inch toward her. Piper didn’t miss a beat. She grabbed the other armrest and pulled me back, her smile frozen in place. “Let’s keep things fair, shall we?” They stared at each other over my head. I could practically hear the tectonic plates of their egos grinding together. I gave up on the food. I just sat there, sipping orange juice, watching the silent war. Isabel took a sip of her water. Piper took a gulp of her soup. Then, silence. Ten minutes later, my fingertips started to itch. My breathing became shallow, heavy. I turned to look at Isabel—her face was flushed a deep crimson. She was tugging at her necktie, her throat working in tight, rhythmic swallows. She locked eyes with Piper. They both seemed stunned for a second. Then, Isabel’s eyes widened. She gritted her teeth so hard I thought they’d shatter. “I… I underestimated how low you’d go.” The “supplement” Piper had put in the water was taking effect. Shaking, Isabel reached for her phone, but Piper snatched it and smashed it against the floor. Piper leaned in, grabbing Isabel’s collar and whispering into her ear: “I’m going to make sure someone ‘finds’ you tonight. Let’s see if Parker still wants you after you’ve been ruined.” As she spoke, a group of security guards—men I didn’t recognize—burst into the room. They grabbed Isabel and began dragging her toward the door. I gripped the edge of the table, my voice thick. “What… what did you put in the water?” Piper reached out, her long arm hooking around my wrist, and yanked me down. I lost my balance and tumbled into her lap. She straddled me, her pupils blown wide, looking down at my flushed face. “Just something to make you stop running,” she whispered. [OMG, the ‘Yandere’ trait just unlocked! She’s even betraying her best friend!] [Parker, get off her! This ‘forced love’ plot isn’t for you!] [Whatever, let it play out. At least the side-character is taking the hit so the Male Lead doesn’t have to suffer.] I struggled to get up, but her arms were like coiled pythons. Just as she started to lift me to carry me toward the bedroom, a figure appeared in the doorway, framed by the hall light. A young man, tall and lean, shouting: “Let him go!” [Holy crap! The Male Lead has entered the building!]

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Walking home after school with Everett, the world was exactly as it had always been—the smell of damp pavement, the rhythmic thrum of rain against umbrellas, the comfortable silence between two people who had known each other since they were in diapers. Then, a voice that was unmistakably Everett’s, yet completely silent, echoed inside my skull. God, Cora is such a drag. Why does she have to shadow me every single day? I froze. Everett hadn’t moved his lips. He was staring straight ahead, his profile as sharp and cold as an ice sculpture. If it weren’t for the Sinclair-Aria merger, I wouldn’t even look at her. My father would kill me if I blew the deal. It’s pouring. I bet Luna didn’t bring an umbrella. She’s probably shivering. My heart did a slow, painful somersault in my chest. I felt a cold sweat break out, unrelated to the rain. 1 Luna. She was the new girl—the girl with the thrift-store sweaters and the kind of ethereal beauty that didn’t belong in a place as cutthroat as our private academy. Rumor had it she lived in a cramped studio on the edge of the city, working two jobs just to keep up with the tuition. Everett’s jaw was tight, his usual mask of indifference firmly in place. But the voice in my head—the one that sounded like his soul stripped bare—wouldn’t stop. The walk to that neighborhood is brutal. The streets are a mess. I’m so worried about her. I just want to be the one to take her home. Ugh, if I could just find a way to shake Cora off for five minutes… I stood there, paralyzed. I looked at him, really looked at him, and for the first time, I saw it: the flicker of resentment in his eyes when he glanced at me. He didn’t just find me annoying. He loathed me. Suddenly, the heavy back door of the prep hall creaked open. A soft, hesitant voice drifted toward us. “Everett? My umbrella… it’s broken.” 2 I turned. Luna was standing there, clutching a flimsy, floral-patterned umbrella with a snapped rib that hung like a broken wing. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “I didn’t mean to bother you both. I just… I was worried about my textbooks getting ruined.” She looked up, her eyes catching Everett’s for a split second before she looked away. They were rimmed with red, shimmering with a vulnerability that felt like a calculated strike to the heart. Luna had only been here a week. She barely spoke to anyone, let alone the “inner circle.” For her to ask Everett for help was a move I hadn’t expected. Everett was famous for his lack of patience; he usually cut people down before they could even finish a sentence. But today, he didn’t even hesitate. “Cora, I can’t walk you home today,” he said, his voice dropping an octave into something low and forced. “Luna lives on the other side of town. It’s too far for her to walk in this.” His face remained a mask of ice. If I hadn’t heard the internal screaming of his heart, I might have actually believed this was a moment of chivalry. “And what about me?” I asked, my voice laced with a bitter edge I couldn’t quite suppress. Everett frowned, his irritation bubbling to the surface. “Your driver is literally sitting at the gate, Cora. Just take her broken umbrella and run to the car. It’s twenty feet. You’ll survive.” Without waiting for an answer, he shoved Luna’s mangled umbrella into my hand. 3 Luna looked at me, her face a portrait of guilt and anxiety. She twisted the hem of her cardigan, her fingers shaking. “No, I can’t let you do that, Cora… I’m so sorry. I’m such a mess. Forget I said anything, I’ll just run for the bus.” She turned to go, but Everett caught her arm. His grip was firm, protective. He looked at me again, his lips thinned into a hard line. But his thoughts? They were a riot. Here comes the tantrum. I am so done with her drama. She’s spent her whole life thinking the world revolves around the Aria family fortune. She thinks she owns me. But I’m not playing along anymore. I love Luna. I want to scream it just to see the look on Cora’s face. Luna can’t get sick. I won’t let her. I felt like the air had been sucked out of the street. Something inside me—some old, dusty hope—finally cracked and turned to ash. Before he could say another word, I took a step back. “Just go,” I said. Everett’s shoulders slumped in visible relief. He turned to her, his voice softening into a register I’d never heard him use with me. “Luna, give me your bag. I’ve got you.” Luna gave me one last, lingering look of pity before she tucked herself under Everett’s umbrella. Within seconds, they were two silhouettes blending into the grey curtain of the rain. I looked down at the broken umbrella in my hand. Then, I tossed it into the gutter and walked into the downpour. At the gate, our driver, Arthur, scrambled out with a large canopy, looking panicked. “Miss Aria! Where is Mr. Sinclair? Why are you all alone?” “Just drive, Arthur,” I said, leaning back into the leather seat, feeling the cold water seep into my skin. My eyes burned, but I refused to let a single tear fall. 4 When I got home, my mother was a whirlwind of silk and concern. She began rubbing my hair with a towel, her voice a frantic hum. “Cora! Are you trying to catch pneumonia? Where is Everett? He’s supposed to be with you! Look at you, you’re pale as a ghost. If your father heard about this, he’d fly back from the London merger tonight…” “Mom,” I interrupted, my voice sounding hollow and strange. “I just want to sleep.” She paused, searching my face for a moment. “Agatha, get the ginger tea started! I’ll bring it up myself.” She didn’t push. She knew me well enough to know when the silence was a warning. I changed into dry clothes and went upstairs. The moment the door clicked shut, the world went silent. But the images from the afternoon kept playing on a loop in the back of my mind. I saw the way Everett’s eyes crinkled at the corners when he looked at Luna. I saw the way he looked at me—like I was an obstacle to be cleared, a debt to be paid. The voices hadn’t been a hallucination. Everett Sinclair didn’t just tolerate me. He used me. He hated the very shadow I cast. For years, I told myself he was just “stoic,” that he didn’t know how to show affection because of the pressure his father put on him. I was wrong. He knew how to show it; he just didn’t want to show it to me. My phone buzzed on the nightstand. The caller ID flashed: EVERETT. 5 The second I picked up, his voice came through like a jagged blade. “Cora, did you say something to your mother? Because my father just called me, losing his mind. It was a rainstorm, for God’s sake. I was being a decent human being and giving a classmate a ride. Do you really have to run to the parents every time you don’t get your way?” I could hear his breathing—jagged, frantic. It was the most emotion I’d ever heard from him. “Everett,” I said, my voice eerily calm. “Are you calling to check if I’m okay? Or are you just scared that if my family pulls out of the merger, your father will finally realize you’re useless?” There was a beat of silence. Over the phone, the “mind-reading” didn’t work. But I didn’t need it. I could see the sneer on his face. “Don’t be dramatic,” he snapped. “You’re just throwing a fit because I didn’t hold your hand for two blocks. Just tell your dad it was a misunderstanding. Fix this, Cora.” I took a long, shaky breath. “Everett, why would I ever cover for you again?” The line went dead silent. 6 I let out a short, cold laugh. “You think your dad found out because of me? Everett, use your head. Do you have any idea how many people your father has watching us? He knows exactly how much money the Aria family has pumped into your father’s failing ventures. He’s not watching me—he’s watching his investment.” I heard a muffled thud on the other end, like he’d punched a wall. “Are you finished?” he hissed. “No,” I said. “I’m just getting started. I’ve spent years keeping quiet about your ‘moods’ because I thought we were a team. But the truth is, the Sinclair family would be in bankruptcy court if it weren’t for my father’s pity.” The silence stretched out, heavy and suffocating. He was calculating, weighing his pride against his bank account. Finally, his voice came back, cold as a winter morning. “I won’t be calling you for a while, Cora. Maybe take that time to think about how you treat people. You think money buys loyalty? Good luck with that.” He hung up before I could reply. 7 The cold war lasted three days. I knew he was waiting for me to crawl back, to apologize for “misunderstanding” him, just like I always did. He thought he was the prize. On the third day, I was walking to the library when Luna collided with me. It happened in slow motion. Before I could even react, she was on the floor, clutching her ankle and whimpering. Students stopped in the hallway, their eyes darting between us. Then, that familiar, low voice cut through the air. “Cora! What the hell are you doing?” I looked up to find Everett’s eyes burning with pure, unadulterated disgust. Luna bit her lip, her voice a tiny, fragile thing. “It wasn’t her fault, Everett. I was just… I was walking too fast.” God, even now she’s trying to protect her. Luna is too good for this world. I’ve only ignored Cora for three days and she’s already targeting Luna. She’s so incredibly spoiled. I can’t breathe in the same room as her. Once I take over the company, I am going to bury the Aria family. I’ll make sure Cora never looks down on anyone again. The thoughts hit me like a physical blow. 8 I looked at the crowd, then back at Everett. “She ran into me.” Everett stepped forward, his lip curling. “Save it. Do you honestly expect us to believe she tripped herself just to spite you? You’re pathetic.” I looked at Luna, who was looking up at him with wide, watery eyes. “You’re right,” I said quietly. “She knew exactly what she was doing. She knew that if she fell, a dog like you would come running to bark at me.” The hallway went dead silent. Luna gasped, fresh tears spilling over. “Cora, I know you hate me, but how can you talk to Everett like that? He’s only being kind…” Everett’s fists were clenched so tight his knuckles were white. “Is this who you are now, Cora? Just a bully hiding behind a trust fund? You clearly haven’t learned a thing—” “If you hate the trust fund so much,” I interrupted, “stop using it. I’m telling my father tonight to pull the funding for the East Side project. You should probably tell your dad to start looking for new investors. Or a bankruptcy lawyer.” There she goes again. Always the power play, always the threats. She’s bluffing. She’ll cool off in two days and come crying to me. And when she does, I’m making her get on her knees to apologize to Luna. “Do whatever you want,” Everett spat. “I don’t care.” He knelt down, sweeping Luna into his arms in a classic bridal carry. “Hang on,” he whispered to her, his voice dripping with artificial sweetness. “I’ve got you. Let’s get you to the nurse.” Luna tucked her head into his shoulder, her face hidden from the crowd. But as they turned, I caught it—the tiny, sharp curve of a smirk aimed directly at me. I didn’t say a word. I just turned and walked the other way. 9 My father came home that night, still smelling like jet fuel and expensive espresso. We sat in his study, the heavy oak doors shut tight. He tossed a stack of documents onto the desk. “The Sinclairs are pushing hard for the East Side development, Cora. Your Uncle George has been hounding me for a decision. I’ve been holding off. What do you think?” My father knew exactly what was going on. He’d seen the Sinclairs lean on our family for decades, using our reputation to prop up their shaky empire. He’d only allowed it because he thought Everett would eventually be family. I looked him in the eye. “Dad, I’ve been a fool. But I’m awake now. It’s time to cut them loose. All of it.” He let out a short, dry chuckle and pushed the papers aside. “Good. I was hoping you’d say that.” He stood up and walked over, placing a hand on my shoulder. “Remember this, Cora. You are an Aria. You are the heir to everything we’ve built. You don’t bow to anyone. Especially not a Sinclair.” I nodded, feeling a strange, cold peace settle over me.

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I stood outside my own front door, my fingers trembling as I gripped the “No Trespassing” sign someone had crudely taped over the lock. It had started a week ago. Rosa, my live-in housekeeper, had come to me with tear-rimmed eyes. She told me her mother was coming up from their small rural town for medical treatments and asked if she could stay for a few days. Rosa was a godsend—meticulous, a wizard in the kitchen, the kind of person who anticipated my needs before I even knew I had them. My heart softened, and I agreed. I never imagined that coming home from work today would mean finding my own home turned into a fortress against me. The moment I pushed the door open, I saw a woman I didn’t recognize sprawled on my Italian leather sofa. She was older, with sharp, bird-like eyes that narrowed the second she saw me. Her boots were still on, resting right on the white upholstery. “Who the hell are you?” she barked, her voice like sandpaper. “My daughter doesn’t need some stray hanging around, eating her food for free. If you don’t have a place to live, go find a bridge to sleep under. Get out!” I stood there, stunned into silence by the sheer audacity. Rosa scrambled out of the kitchen then, her face pale. she grabbed my arm and pulled me into the hallway, whispering frantically. “Janet, I am so, so sorry,” she hissed, her voice shaking. “I couldn’t tell her the truth. She thinks… she thinks I bought this place. She thinks I’m the success story of the family. Could you just… could you go to a hotel for tonight? Please?” Before I could even process the request, a heavy thud echoed through the hallway. The old woman had marched over and physically shoved me back across the threshold. Then, the heavy oak door slammed shut, and I heard the deadbolt click. Locked out of my own penthouse. I took a deep breath, the cold air of the hallway stinging my lungs, and pulled out my phone. “911? I’d like to report a break-in. There are strangers illegally occupying my residence, and I’ve been locked out.” 1 I never thought I’d be the woman standing in a luxury hallway, being called a “leech” by a squatter. Ten minutes later, the elevator dinked, and two police officers stepped out. Just as they reached me, the door opened. Rosa burst out, her face a mask of frantic desperation. She lunged for my arm. “Janet! Why would you call the police? My mother has a heart condition—you’re going to give her a stroke!” One of the officers frowned. “Ma’am, did you place the call? You reported an illegal occupation?” Before I could get a word in, Rosa turned to the officers, her eyes welling up with practiced ease. “Officers, I am so sorry. This is all a huge misunderstanding. This is my boss, Ms. Janet. I’m her housekeeper. My mother is in town from the country for her health, and I… I was ashamed. I told her I bought this condo because I wanted her to be proud of me.” She wiped a stray tear, looking like a martyr. “My mother didn’t realize… she thought Janet was a roommate who wasn’t paying her share. She’s protective. She said some things she shouldn’t have, and I apologize on her behalf. Please, Janet, have a heart. She’s old. She can’t handle this kind of stress.” At that moment, Rosa’s mother—Mrs. Hendrix—poked her head out, looking at us like we were gum on the bottom of her shoe. “Rosa! Why are you talking to this stray? Tell her to hit the bricks!” The officer’s expression hardened. “Ma’am, watch your tone.” Mrs. Hendrix bristled. “I’ll talk how I want in my daughter’s house!” Rosa looked like she was about to faint. “Mom! Shut up!” She turned back to me, and for a second, I thought she was going to drop to her knees right there on the carpet. I stepped back, avoiding the touch. “Janet, please,” she sobbed. “Just for tonight. I’ve taken such good care of you. I’ve been here for every late night, every time you were sick. Please, let her have this one night of dignity. She leaves tomorrow. I’ll pay for your hotel!” The officers looked at me, then at the crying woman, then at the stubborn old lady in the doorway. It was a mess. I felt a slow burn behind my eyes. Rosa had been good to me. When my appendix nearly burst six months ago, she was the one who stayed at the hospital. She took care of my cat like it was her own child. I owed her that much, didn’t I? “Fine,” I said, the word tasting like ash. “One night. That’s it.” I turned to the officers. “I’m sorry for wasting your time. It’s a domestic dispute. I’ll be staying elsewhere tonight.” The officers looked relieved to be off the hook. They gave Rosa a stern warning about her mother’s behavior and left. Rosa showered me with “thank yous,” her head bowed low. “Janet, you’re an angel. Truly. Where will you go?” “A hotel,” I said curtly. “And I expect the place to be empty by noon tomorrow.” As I walked toward the elevator, I heard Mrs. Hendrix’s voice drifting from the open door, smug and loud: “That’s right, run along! Trying to act tough in my daughter’s house… some people just don’t know their place.” I clenched my fists until my nails drew blood, but I didn’t look back. 2 The next morning, I arrived at exactly 10:00 AM. The moment the door opened, a wave of heavy grease and a sour, pungent smell hit me. I winced. Mrs. Hendrix was sitting cross-legged on my sofa—my white silk sofa—wearing my $500 La Perla silk robe. She was picking her teeth with a splintered toothpick, the hem of the robe stained with what looked like red wine and grease. The coffee table was buried under sunflower seed shells and orange peels. On my custom-made wool rug, there were several dark, muddy footprints. She didn’t even look up when I walked in. “Oh, you’re back. Good. We haven’t had breakfast. Go into the kitchen, wash the dishes from last night, and whip us up something hot.” She spoke with the casual authority of a queen addressing a scullery maid. I swallowed the scream building in my throat and looked at Rosa, who was emerging from the kitchen with a bowl of cold oatmeal. “Janet… you’re early. My mom, she…” “She was supposed to leave this morning, Rosa,” I said, my voice dangerously level. “The… the bus was full,” Rosa whispered, not meeting my eyes. “She needs one more day.” “One more day?” I let out a sharp, cold laugh. Yesterday it was a night. Today it’s a day. Tomorrow it’ll be forever. Mrs. Hendrix tossed her toothpick onto the table and stood up, her eyes flashing. “Is there a problem? This is my daughter’s house. I’ll stay as long as I damn well please. You’re the guest here, and a rude one at that.” She walked up to me, scanning my designer suit with pure disdain. “You dress like you’re somebody, but you’re just a parasite. If my Rosa wasn’t so soft-hearted, you’d be out on the street where you belong.” My blood was boiling. Before I could respond, the doorbell rang. Rosa jumped like she’d been shot and ran to the door. A man walked in, carrying several bulging plastic bags and a battered suitcase. He was thick-set, with a loud, boisterous energy. “Auntie! I’m here!” he yelled. Mrs. Hendrix’s face lit up. “Cody! Look at you! Come in, come in!” She ushered him in, then threw a nasty look over her shoulder at me. “Don’t just stand there like a statue. Get the man a drink!” Rosa looked at me, her face a frantic shade of crimson. “Janet, this is my cousin, Cody…” I didn’t move. I watched Cody kick off his boots and walk across my hardwood floors in dirty socks, his eyes darting around the room like a radar. “Damn, Auntie,” Cody whistled. “Rosa really hit the jackpot. This place is huge. Must have cost a fortune.” Mrs. Hendrix puffed out her chest. “Well, my Rosa is a success. Not like some people.” Cody turned to me, his gaze lingering uncomfortably on my chest before moving to my face. “And who’s this? The help?” Rosa hesitated, her voice trembling. “She… she’s a distant relative. Staying here for a bit while she finds her feet.” “Ah,” Cody grunted, his lip curling in a sneer. “A charity case. Well, you better thank my cousin, honey. Most people would have left you in the gutter.” 3 I felt something click in my brain. The sheer, unadulterated gall of these people was almost impressive. Mrs. Hendrix settled Cody on the sofa and shouted at me, “What are you waiting for? We have a guest! Make sure lunch is special. My nephew likes steak and lobster. Get moving!” I looked at Rosa. She was looking at the floor, her voice a tiny squeak. “Janet, please. He’s only here for a visit. Just this once…” “You want me to be your chef?” I asked, my voice flat. Rosa’s face burned. She couldn’t answer. Mrs. Hendrix lost her patience. She stepped forward and shoved my shoulder. “Are you deaf? Do something useful for once or I’ll have my daughter throw you out in the snow!” Cody chimed in, laughing. “Yeah, Rosa, why do you keep this lazy ‘relative’ around? If it were me, I’d have kicked her to the curb days ago.” Rosa looked like she was about to cry, signaling me with desperate eyes. I took a long, slow breath. I looked at Rosa and smiled—a thin, sharp smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “What does your cousin want to eat? Make a list. I’ll take care of it.” Rosa looked stunned, then flooded with relief. “Thank you, Janet! Oh, thank you!” Mrs. Hendrix huffed. “About time you showed some gratitude.” A few minutes later, Rosa handed me a list. It was ridiculous—premium ribeye, live lobsters, expensive bourbon, exotic fruits. At the bottom, she’d written: Only the best. Make sure it’s fresh. I glanced at the list. “This is going to be expensive, Rosa. You sure about this?” Rosa nodded frantically. “Don’t worry about the cost, Janet. I’ll cover it!” “You’ll cover it?” I looked her in the eye. “Fine. By my math, with the alcohol and the high-end cuts, we’re looking at about three thousand dollars. Venmo it to me now.” Rosa’s smile froze. “Three… thousand?” “What, is that too much for your favorite cousin?” I arched an eyebrow. “I thought you were the big success story. Surely three grand is pocket change for the owner of a Seattle penthouse.” Cody looked up, his brow furrowed. “Rosa? Is there a problem? You’re not getting cheap on me, are you? You live in this palace and you’re worried about a few grand?” Mrs. Hendrix glared at her daughter. “He’s right! Don’t be a miser, Rosa. Give her the money. Don’t let us look poor in front of your own blood!” Rosa was trapped. Her monthly salary was only eight thousand. Three thousand was a massive hit. She looked at me, and for the first time, I saw real venom in her eyes. But with her family watching, she had no choice. Ding. The notification popped up on my phone. Transaction complete. “Wait right here,” I said. I grabbed the list and walked out the door without looking back. I didn’t go to the grocery store. I went to a high-end cafe three blocks away, ordered a $12 oat milk latte, and sat by the window. I spent an hour scrolling through my phone, planning my next move. Throwing them out physically would be messy. Mrs. Hendrix would scream, pretend to have a heart attack, and the neighbors would talk. No, I didn’t just want them out. I wanted Rosa to pay for the lie. I wanted her mother to see exactly what her “successful” daughter really was. An hour later, I walked back into the apartment carrying two large shopping bags. Mrs. Hendrix met me at the door, peering greedily into the bags. “About time! Where’s the lobster?” I dropped the bags on the floor. Inside were three heads of wilted cabbage, two bags of cheap potatoes, and a bunch of soggy spinach. Mrs. Hendrix’s face turned purple. “What is this? Where is the steak? The bourbon?” I calmly kicked off my shoes. “Oh, the market was so crowded. I couldn’t get to the meat counter. I figured we’d just make do with this. It’s healthier, anyway.” “Make do?” Her voice hit a glass-shattering register. “I gave you three thousand dollars for cabbage?” She pointed a shaking finger at my face. “You thief! You low-life! You stole my daughter’s money!”

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My phone buzzed on the nightstand, the screen lighting up with a notification from my banking app. I was in the middle of packing, surrounded by half-taped cardboard boxes and the lingering scent of dust. I was finally moving out, heading to a small studio I’d rented on the edge of the city. I swiped the notification open. My heart didn’t just skip a beat; it seemed to stop entirely. A transfer of exactly $100,000 had been debited from my savings account ending in 3692. My current balance: $0.38. That money was my life. It was four years of grueling academic scholarships, competition prize money, and every cent I’d scraped together from three different part-time jobs. Now, it was gone. I stared at the screen for three long seconds. I closed the app, refreshed it, and logged back in. The number remained the same. “Naomi? Where’s your card? I need to borrow it for a sec.” Kaylee’s voice drifted in from the living room, breezy and entitled, as if she were asking for a stick of gum. When I didn’t answer, she raised her voice. “Naomi? You there? Where’d you put the card?” I gripped the phone so hard my knuckles turned white. I didn’t say a word. My heart was racing, a frantic drumming in my chest, but then, slowly, a cold, sharp clarity washed over me. 1. I didn’t confront Kaylee that night. When she asked for the card again, I simply told her I had an errand to run and left. She didn’t even look up from her phone; she just waved a hand, dismissing me like a servant. We had been roommates for four years, and this had always been the dynamic. I was the “boring” one, the one who lived in the library, while she was the social butterfly who treated my things as her own. I had let it happen. I had called it friendship. My new place was a cramped studio in a run-down part of town. After paying the security deposit and the first three months’ rent, I should have had over ninety thousand dollars left—enough to cover my first year of law school and my living expenses. Now, I had thirty-eight cents. The next evening, my new landlord knocked on the door. I was sitting on a packing crate, eating a bowl of instant noodles. It was my third meal of the same thing. “Naomi, about the rent for next month…” “Mrs. Gable, could you give me forty-eight hours?” I set my chopsticks down, trying to keep my voice steady. “I’m waiting for a wire transfer to clear.” She looked at my meager meal, then at the empty apartment, and sighed. “Fine. Two days. But after that, I have to charge a late fee.” The door clicked shut. I went back to my noodles. They were tasteless, but they filled the hole in my stomach. Later that night, lying on a thin mattress on the floor, I began scrolling through my text history with Kaylee. It spanned four years, a digital trail of small erosions. “Naomi, can I borrow fifty? I’ll Venmo you next month.” “Hey, grab me a salad on your way back? I’ll pay you later!” “Naomi, things are a little tight this month. Can that two thousand wait?” I scrolled and scrolled, the fog in my brain lifting. Freshman year: $3,000 borrowed, one year later she paid back $2,000, saying, “Let’s just call the rest even since I bought you all those drinks at that one party.” Sophomore year: $5,000 for a “professional development” course she never took. She paid back $3,000. “I’ll get the rest to you once we’re working.” Junior and senior year: a thousand here, five hundred there. I opened a note on my phone and started a spreadsheet. The final number: $18,300. She had never once initiated a repayment. Every cent I’d gotten back had been like pulling teeth, and every time, there was a new excuse, a new drama that made her the victim. “I thought we were sisters,” I whispered to the dark ceiling. I felt like the punchline to a very long, very cruel joke. On the third day, I went to the university’s financial aid office to check my scholarship disbursement records. “Naomi Vance, right?” The clerk tapped at her keyboard. “Your merit scholarship was disbursed last month. You requested an early release of funds. Don’t you remember?” “Early release?” “Yes. Right here.” She turned the monitor toward me. “You signed for it in person.” I looked at the digital signature. It was a clever imitation, but I knew it wasn’t mine. The strokes were too soft, the tail of the ‘V’ too flared. I’d practiced calligraphy for a decade; my signature was precise, sharp. This was a doodle. I didn’t argue. “Could I get a copy of that request form?” I asked. The clerk gave me a strange look. “A copy? What for?” “For my tax records,” I lied smoothly. She shrugged and printed it out. I folded the paper carefully and tucked it into my bag. As I walked out into the bright afternoon sun, a memory surfaced. Last winter, we were sitting in our old dorm, sharing a bottle of wine. Kaylee was complaining about forgetting her banking PINs. She’d asked me how I remembered mine. “I just use my birthday,” I’d said. “Simple. Hard to forget.” She’d laughed, a soft, musical sound. “That’s way too easy, Naomi. Someone could rob you blind.” I hadn’t thought anything of it then. Now, I realized the look in her eyes hadn’t been concern. It had been an observation. 2. At 7:00 PM, I sent Kaylee a text. “Kaylee, something’s wrong with my scholarship fund. Do you know anything about it?” Five minutes later, she replied: “Huh? What do you mean? How would I know?” “The school said someone requested an early payout. The signature on the form isn’t mine.” My phone immediately rang. “Naomi, what the hell are you implying?” Kaylee’s voice was an octave higher than usual, sharp with indignation. “Are you actually accusing me of something?” I stayed silent. “We’ve been best friends for four years! And now you’re treating me like a criminal over some bank error?” “I never said it was you, Kaylee.” “Then why are you asking me? Your tone is disgusting. I’m honestly heartbroken, Naomi. Does four years of friendship really mean so little to you compared to a hundred grand?” She hung up. I looked at the “Call Ended” screen and let out a dry, hollow laugh. I hadn’t mentioned the amount. I hadn’t told anyone exactly how much was in that account. How did she know it was a hundred grand? The next morning, I opened Instagram. Kaylee had posted a story. It was a black background with white text, the classic “vague-post” of a victim. “It’s crazy how some people let paranoia ruin everything. Four years of being there for someone, and they turn on you the second things get weird. I guess you never really know people. Just glad I see the truth now.” The comments were already piling up from our mutual friends. “What happened, babe? Who’s bothering you?” “Some people are just small-minded, Kaylee. Don’t let them get to you.” “Ignore the haters. You’re too good for that drama.” I saw familiar names in the likes. Even Phoebe, who I’d helped pass her Bar Prep, had commented a heart emoji. I put the phone down. I didn’t respond. Two days later, in our old college group chat, Tyler—my boyfriend of two years—posted a photo. It was a picture of him and Kaylee. They were standing close, her head on his shoulder, and on her finger was a diamond that caught the light like a miniature sun. Tyler’s caption read: “She said yes. To forever with my soulmate.” I stared at the photo until the image burned into my retinas. Tyler and I had started dating sophomore year. We’d been long-distance for the last year while he moved to New York for an internship and I stayed back to finish my degree and prep for law school. In that year, we’d FaceTime’d maybe ten times. He was always “exhausted” or “swamped with work.” I’d been the one to call, the one to send care packages, the one to fly out to see him. I thought he was just building a career for us. Now I realized he’d been busy, alright. He’d been building a life with my best friend. The group chat exploded. “Tyler! Engaged?! Congrats!” “Wait, Kaylee? When did this happen?!” “OMG so happy for you guys! Power couple!” I quietly left the group. That night, Tyler called me. 3. “Hey, Naomi.” Tyler’s voice was tentative, lacking its usual bravado. “So… I’m guessing you saw the news.” “I did.” “Look, with Kaylee… it’s just one of those things. You can’t help who you fall for. Don’t be bitter, okay?” I said nothing. “I wanted to tell you sooner, but there was never a good time. And honestly, Naomi, you’re so focused on your books all the time. There’s no spark. With Kaylee, it’s just… easy. It was inevitable.” “Inevitable,” I repeated. The word felt like lead in my mouth. “Exactly. So don’t blame me. It’s about chemistry. Besides being a straight-A student, what else is there? Kaylee is warm, she’s fun. She actually knows how to live.” I listened to him talk, and I felt a strange, chilling peace. “I understand.” “That’s it?” He sounded disappointed, like he’d been bracing for a screaming match. “You’re not going to yell?” “What would be the point, Tyler?” “Right. Well… no hard feelings. Let’s be adults about this. We can still be friends down the road.” I hung up. Friends? My boyfriend of two years was engaged to my roommate of four. And they called it “inevitable.” I lay back on my mattress and began to piece the last year together. The times Tyler was “too busy” to talk, he’d been on the phone with Kaylee. The times he “forgot” my birthday but sent Kaylee a massive floral arrangement for her “half-birthday” because she was feeling down. The weekly FaceTimes they had while I was in the library, sometimes talking for hours. I had been so blind, lost in the “quiet moments” of my own loyalty, while they were laughing at me in the dark. The next day, Kaylee posted a new photo. A close-up of the ring. It was a three-carat oval cut, Platinum band. The caption: “Thank you to my incredible fiancé for the $100,000 engagement gift. The best decision of my life was saying yes to you.” One hundred thousand. I looked at the date of the post: April 15th. My scholarship funds had been drained on March 20th. I knew Tyler’s job. He was a junior developer at a mid-sized firm. He made $80,000 a year and lived in an expensive apartment in Brooklyn. There was no way he had $100,000 in cash for a ring. And I knew Kaylee’s family. Her parents were working-class people who had struggled just to pay her tuition. Where did the money come from? The answer was screaming at me. I took a screenshot. The date, the amount, the caption. Everything aligned. That money was my sweat and blood. Four years of sleep deprivation, of missing parties to study, of working through holidays. And now, it was a sparkling trophy on the finger of the woman who had spent four years pretending to love me. It was her “gift” from the man who had spent two years pretending to be mine. 4. I couldn’t sleep that night. Not because I was angry, but because I was calculating. I had known Kaylee for four years. I’d held her hair back when she was sick. I’d lent her money when she was short on rent. I thought we were a team. In reality, I was just her ATM with a heartbeat. At 2:00 AM, I got up and opened my laptop. I was a top-tier law student. Rank #1 in my class, winner of the National Mock Trial, and I’d passed the MPRE with a near-perfect score. I already had an offer from Stonebridge & Associates, one of the most prestigious firms in the country. I’d never bragged to Kaylee about these things. I didn’t think I needed to. To her, I was just “the girl who studies law.” She didn’t realize my specialty was white-collar crime and forensic accounting. I opened a new document and began organizing my “Case.” First: The forged signature on the scholarship form. I could hire a handwriting expert to verify the discrepancy. Second: The bank statements. The timestamp of the $100k transfer from my account matched the timeline of Tyler’s “sudden” ability to buy a ring. Third: The social media evidence. Her own words—the “hundred thousand dollar gift.” Fourth: The four-year ledger of unpaid loans. I had every Venmo request she’d ignored, every text where she promised to pay me back. $18,300 in small-scale theft. By sunrise, I had a comprehensive evidence binder. My phone rang. It was my mom. “Naomi, honey, I saw Kaylee’s post…” Her voice was cautious. “Isn’t that the boy you were seeing?” “Yeah, Mom. Was.” “Are you… are you okay?” “I’m fine.” Mom hesitated. “Kaylee actually called me. She said you’ve been acting erratic, accusing her of stealing? Naomi, honey, are you sure? Kaylee always seemed like such a sweet girl. Maybe it’s just a misunderstanding?” I felt a wave of exhaustion hit me. “Mom, do you trust her or me?” “I trust you, of course! But these are serious accusations. Without proof, it could really hurt her reputation. You don’t want to be that person.” I smiled to myself, a cold, hard expression. “I know, Mom. I’ll handle it.” I hung up and looked out the window. The sun was fully up now, casting long shadows across the city. That afternoon, I received a digital invitation in my inbox. A flurry of red and gold. “Dearest Naomi: We would be honored to have you join us for the engagement party of Kaylee Miller and Tyler Bennett. You’ve been such a huge part of our journey—we need you there to witness our happiness! Date: May 1st. Location: The Grand Carlyle Hotel.” Kaylee even tagged me in the group chat she’d made for the party: “Naomi, you HAVE to come. You’re my bestie, I couldn’t do this without you!~” I stared at the message for a long time. Then, I typed three words: “I’ll be there.” And added: “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” 5. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” I put the phone down and took a deep breath. May 1st. Twelve days away. Twelve days was more than enough time to burn a bridge properly. That afternoon, I went to Stonebridge & Associates. Even though my start date was months away, my mentor, Isabel, had always told me her door was open. Isabel was thirty-five, a partner in the criminal defense department, and a shark in a Chanel suit. She was exactly who I wanted to be. “Naomi? I thought you were taking the month off to move,” Isabel said, looking up from a stack of depositions. “Isabel, I need your professional opinion.” I laid it all out. The scholarship, the forgery, the roommate, the boyfriend. Isabel listened in silence for several minutes. When I finished, she looked at the folder I’d brought. “You have the evidence?” I handed it over. The forged form, the bank logs, the screenshots. Isabel flipped through the pages, her brow furrowing. “The handwriting is a dead giveaway. Any expert could tear that apart in ten minutes.” She looked up at me. “What’s the play, Naomi?” “I want to file a police report.” “You can. But you know as well as I do that once you trigger the legal system, there’s no going back. This is felony-level grand larceny and fraud.” I nodded. “I know.” Isabel looked at the papers again, then leaned back in her chair. “Your uncle works at the local news station, doesn’t he? Lead producer for the investigative unit?” “He does.” “Good.” Isabel handed the folder back. “File the report. Once it’s logged, if they don’t cooperate, we look into media pressure. Economic fraud plus identity theft—this isn’t just a spat between roommates. It’s a criminal case.” I took the folder. “Thanks, Isabel.” She smiled at me, a sharp, appreciative glint in her eyes. “Naomi, you’re the calmest intern I’ve ever seen. Most girls your age would be in tears right now.” “Do tears pay the rent?” “No,” Isabel said, patting my shoulder. “They don’t. Go get them. Call me if you need a reference for the D.A.” As I left the office, the city lights were flickering on. My phone buzzed. It was Kaylee. “Naomi? Are you really coming to the party?” Her voice was smaller now, missing the aggressive edge from before. “I said I would.” “Listen… about the money stuff. You’re not going to make a scene, are you? It would really ruin the night.” “What money stuff, Kaylee?” “You know… you saying I took your money. Just don’t bring it up. It’s my big night.” I gripped my phone, a small, cold smile playing on my lips. “Kaylee, when did I ever say you stole my money?” “Well, you said—” “I just asked if you knew what happened. You were the one who said our friendship was worth more than a hundred grand.” The line went quiet. “I never told anyone the amount was a hundred grand,” I said softly. “So, how did you know?”

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After Gavin changed the keypad code to our apartment, he sent me the new one via text. It took two tries for the lock to click, the heavy door finally swinging open. The moment I stepped inside, the air felt wrong. The crisp, woody scent of the home I’d built had been smothered by a cloying, synthetic gardenia—a fabric softener I never used. In the laundry room, the dryer had finished its cycle. I pulled the clothes out. There was one of his work shirts, and then there was a floral sunshirt, size small. I wear a large. I folded the clothes neatly and set them on the arm of the sofa, my eyes drifting to the trash can in the kitchen. Inside were two takeout containers from a high-end bistro and two empty boba cups. One was marked Regular Sugar; the other, 30% Sweet. Gavin knew I only drank mine unsweetened. Neither of those drinks belonged to me. I didn’t fly into a rage. I simply sat on the sofa and waited. Thirty minutes later, the door hummed. Gavin walked in, freezing for a split second when he saw me. He kicked off his shoes, his voice casual, almost rehearsed. “You’re home early.” I pointed to the dress on the sofa. “Who did you do laundry for?” “A colleague,” he said, not looking at me. “Someone spilled wine on her at the mixer.” “A colleague who wears a small, likes her drinks a quarter-sweet, and uses gardenia-scented Downy?” I pressed. He didn’t answer. I grabbed my bag and walked to the door. “I’m only using this new code once,” I said, my voice steady despite the roar in my ears. “Change it again. And don’t bother sending me the next one.” 1 “It’s too late. I’ll come get you in the morning.” The text flashed on my phone at 1:47 AM. I was at my studio, the only light coming from the spotlight over my compounding table. The base notes of sandalwood and cedarwood clung to me—cold, clean, sharp. Nothing like gardenias. A second message followed immediately: “Macy just had too much to drink and ruined her dress. She just came over to shower and change. Don’t let your mind go to the darkest place possible, Diana.” Macy. He’d given her a name. At the apartment, she was a “colleague.” Now, she was Macy. I didn’t reply. Instead, I twisted open a bottle of bitter orange essential oil and inhaled. The scent was a grounding wire for my racing heart. A scent profile like that gardenia softener doesn’t just “happen” after one shower. Those molecules bond to fibers; you have to use it for two or three weeks straight for it to linger like that. I’d spent eight years training as a perfumer. My nose was far more honest than his mouth. I typed back: “She’s a size small, she uses gardenia softener, and she drinks 30% sweet boba. All three of these things appeared in your life during the two weeks you changed the locks. Gavin, I don’t own gardenia softener.” The “typing…” bubble flickered six times. Finally, a voice note. I tapped play. Two seconds of silence, then a long, weary sigh. “Work has been hell with the new product launch. She’s been helping me with the distributors, staying late to handle the logistics. She’s just been… looking after things for a bit. It’s temporary. It won’t happen again.” Looking after things. Changing his detergent. Ordering his tea. Washing her floral dresses in his machine. He called it a convenience. I recorded a reply, my voice sounding flatter than I expected. “So, you’re admitting it?” “Admitting what?” He was faster at typing than speaking. “Diana, can you stop obsessing over the details? Maybe I handled the boundaries poorly, but you can’t throw away three years of ‘us’ over a bottle of laundry soap.” Three years. He had the nerve to bring up the time. Three years ago, when he wanted to start his fragrance house, he had exactly six thousand dollars in his bank account. I sold three of my private formulas—the ones my mother left me in her estate—to raise the hundred thousand he needed for seed money. Those formulas were my inheritance, my soul. On a folding table in our old studio, he’d signed a napkin with a shaky hand: You own half this company, and the door code will always be your birthday. Always. Back then, it was always. Now, it was “it won’t happen again.” I typed: “Three years. You mean the three years where I provided the capital and the intellectual property?” “There you go, keeping score again,” he shot back instantly. “I’m trying to talk about feelings, and you’re talking about money. This is exactly your problem.” My problem. I stared at those words until they blurred. I turned off my phone and flipped it face down on the stainless steel table. As dawn broke, I went back to the apartment to get the rest of my things. I opened the fridge and stopped, my hand hovering in the cold air. The shelf was lined with boba cups. All of them “30% Sweet.” Small, round sticky notes were attached to the sides with bubbly handwriting and little smiley faces. Special sweetness for Mr. CEO! Keep up the hard work! —M. Macy. She had nicknamed herself in my fridge. I took them out, one by one. Eight cups. I moved to the closet. My coats and sweaters were still there, but in the bottom drawer, there was a new pink organizer. A keychain with a little bear hung from the zipper. Inside were two pairs of leggings, folded neatly. Size small. In the bathroom, a pink ceramic mug sat on the counter. It said: SMALL BUT MIGHTY. I took my toothbrush. I left her mug where it was. Finally, I opened my jewelry box. The engagement ring sat in the top velvet slot. A one-carat diamond Gavin said he bought with his first “real profit.” But the formula for that order had been mine. In the end, I had bought that ring for myself. I walked back to the kitchen. In the trash, the eight boba cups were beginning to sweat, the brown liquid leaking out. I dropped the ring into the bin. It sank to the bottom, wedged between a plastic lid and a sticky note that said M. My phone buzzed. Gavin: “Are you coming home today? Let’s talk in person. Don’t just sit there overthinking.” I grabbed my suitcase and took one last look at the place. Twelve hundred square feet, south-facing, a lease I’d negotiated, a space I’d curated. Now, it smelled like someone else’s life. I sent one final text: “The fridge is cleared out. The trash is full. Don’t forget to take it out.” 2 “We need to talk about your equity. In person.” A week later, Gavin sent the message along with a pin for a high-end Italian restaurant downtown. My friend Rebecca was fuming on the other end of the line. “Don’t go. He’s definitely up to something.” “I have to sign the buyout papers eventually,” I said. “Dragging it out doesn’t help me.” “Then I’m coming with you.” “No. If there are people there, he’ll use it as an excuse to dodge the real conversation.” When I pulled up to the restaurant, I saw his suit first. A dark charcoal bespoke piece with subtle pinstripes. I’d given it to him for his birthday two years ago. He’d told me then that the cut was too traditional and had never worn it once. He was wearing it today. Buttons done up to the top, a perfect Windsor knot in his tie. He stood up to pull out my chair. “Sit. I ordered the steamed clams you like.” “I’m here for the papers, Gavin.” “Eat first,” he said, pushing the menu toward me. “You’ve been staying at the studio, haven’t you? The water heater there is broken. How are you even showering?” “Does that have anything to do with my shares?” He stiffened, then pulled a folder from his briefcase. “I’m willing to settle the buyout, but the company valuation is currently in a transition phase. We have to wait until after the Series C funding—” “Gavin.” I cut him off because I saw her. She was walking through the front door in a floral sunshirt, size small, her waist so thin it looked fragile. The scent hit me before she even reached the table—gardenia. Not the real, heady flower, but the cheap, synthetic gardenia aldehyde used in industrial soaps. Cloying, flat, and sickly sweet. Macy. The moment she “noticed” us, her expression shifted with practiced ease—first surprise, then embarrassment, then a smile that was 80% sweet and 20% innocent. “Oh, Gavin! You’re here? What a coincidence.” And then, she sat down. She pulled out the chair next to Gavin as if it were her assigned seat. “Hi, Diana,” she said, nodding at me. Her smile was calibrated to the millimeter. I put my fork down and said nothing. She turned to Gavin immediately. “Gavin, your stomach has been acting up lately, you shouldn’t have anything spicy. Let me order you something lighter.” She reached for the menu, her arm brushing his sleeve. It was a natural movement, one performed a hundred times before. Gavin didn’t flinch. “You don’t mind me being a busybody, do you, Diana?” she asked, her eyes wide and performatively thoughtful. “After the last company party, Gavin was in so much pain. I just can’t stand to see him suffer.” The last company party. The last time his stomach hurt. She knew the schedule of his physical ailments better than I did now. “I don’t mind,” I said, signaling the waiter. “In fact, get him the spicy arrabbiata. Extra chili flakes.” Macy blinked. “Diana, really, he can’t—” “He used to get sick after every gala,” I said, my voice level. “I was the one who stayed up making ginger tea to settle his stomach. You know his stomach is sensitive, but do you know why it’s ruined? Do you know about the three years of stress and whiskey it took to build the company you’re currently sitting on?” She had no answer for that. Gavin frowned, his voice dropping an octave. “Diana, is this necessary? She’s just a kid. Don’t take it out on her.” A kid. The size small dresses, the boba, the gardenia softener, the “Special Sweetness” notes, the pink mug in my bathroom. To him, it was just three words: She’s a kid. “The papers, Gavin,” I said, bringing the focus back. “Like I said, after the Series C funding—” “How long?” “Three to six months.” “I need a date.” He pulled the folder back toward his side of the table. “What’s the rush? It’s not like we’re getting a divorce. Just… take some time to cool off. Go away for a bit, get some perspective, and when you’re ready, we can move past this.” Cool off. He thought I was negotiating my heart. I was negotiating my exit. Macy spoke up then, her voice soft and airy. “Diana, Gavin has been under so much pressure. I’ve been overseeing the entire R&D line for the new launch. We’re in the lab until midnight every night. If it makes you feel better, I can keep my distance from him from now on.” It was a brilliant move. A public concession, a show of weakness, and a subtle reminder that she was the one with him “until midnight” every night. I stood up. Gavin clamped his hand over the folder. “Are you going to sign?” “You wore that suit today because you thought wearing something I gave you would make me soft,” I said, picking up my bag. “You took something you ignored for two years, polished it up, and used it as a tool for an emergency. It’s exactly what you did to me.” His fingers tightened on the table. Beside him, Macy looked down, stirring her coffee, her shoulders hunched as if she were the victim of a great cruelty. As I walked out of the restaurant, I heard her voice behind me, clear through the closing glass door. “Gavin, does she hate me? Maybe I shouldn’t have come.” “It’s not you,” Gavin replied. “She’s always been like this. High-strung.” She’s always been like this. 3 “Diana? Are you here for your things?” The receptionist, Sarah, sounded nervous. Her eyes kept darting toward the main office area. “Yes. Just picking up my personal files.” Gavin’s company was located in a sleek glass building in the tech corridor. I was the one who had picked the space. I was the one who negotiated the lease down. I bought the plants in the lobby. I designed the scent diffusion system in the hallways. But today, when the elevator doors opened, I smelled gardenias. The scent stones in the corridor had been replaced. I didn’t stop. I walked straight into Gavin’s office. The door was ajar. His desk looked the same, but the bottom drawer where I kept my most precious items—a leather-bound A5 notebook, cognac-colored, with worn edges—was open. My mother’s recipe book. The complete compositions for thirty-seven perfumes. Every note, every trial, every raw material ratio. It was the only thing she’d left me. The drawer was empty. The book was gone. I turned around and looked at the workstation directly facing Gavin’s office. The desk was covered in pink organizers and a laptop with a glittery shell. My mother’s notebook was sitting there. It was being used as a coaster for a greasy takeout box and a half-finished boba tea. There was a massive brown ring on the leather cover. I flipped it open. Oil and milk tea had soaked through the parchment, blurring my mother’s elegant script. On page seventeen—the formula for an Osmanthus Absolute that existed nowhere else in the world—the pages were stuck together. She was using my mother’s legacy as a placemat. “Oh, hey, Diana.” Macy appeared, holding two more boba teas. She saw me standing at her desk and slowed her pace. “Gavin asked me to organize that,” she said, her tone suggesting this was the most natural thing in the world. “Some of those formulas need to be digitized for the company’s core assets.” “This is my private property.” “But Gavin said these formulas belong to the firm—” I reached for the book. She jerked back, her chair wheels skidding. In the scramble, her elbow hit the boba cup. Freshly brewed hot tea. The scalding liquid splashed directly onto my outstretched right hand. The pain was immediate—a searing, white-hot iron pressed against my skin. My hand swelled instantly, turning a violent red before the blisters began to rise, clear and bubbling over my knuckles. My right hand. My dominant hand. The hand I used to grind resins, to dip test strips, to feel the weight of a pipette. My livelihood. Macy let out a shrill scream, but she wasn’t looking at my hand. She was looking at her leggings. Gavin came charging out of his office. He ran right past me. He went straight to Macy, kneeling down to check her legs. “Are you okay? Did it burn you? Let me see.” Then he looked up at me, his brow furrowed in annoyance as if I were the one causing trouble. “You know she’s clumsy, Diana. Why are you fighting her over a damn notebook?” A damn notebook. I clutched the tea-soaked leather book with my right hand. The blisters broke under the pressure, the clear fluid mixing with the brown tea stains. “Gavin,” I said, my voice shaking. “The hundred thousand dollars you used to start this company? That ‘damn notebook’ paid for it.” The look on his face finally fractured. “Don’t bother with the door code,” I whispered. “Everything about you feels filthy to me now.” I walked out, clutching the book to my chest. In the elevator, my hand started to shake uncontrollably. The pain had moved past searing into a rhythmic, nauseating throb. Sarah, the receptionist, ran out and handed me a bottle of cold water. She looked at my hand and winced. “Diana… do you want me to call an Uber? You need a hospital.” “Call me one for St. Jude’s.” “Okay.” She hesitated, then whispered, “Diana… Macy took that book herself. Gavin didn’t ask her to. She’s been taking photos of the pages and sending them to outside suppliers all week.” My grip on the notebook tightened. The pain didn’t matter anymore. “Thank you, Sarah.” She nodded, her eyes welling with tears. As the car pulled up, I looked back at the third-floor window. The lights were still on. “Let’s go,” I told the driver. 4 “Second-degree burns. Some deep partial-thickness areas.” The doctor snapped off his gloves and looked at me. “What do you do for a living?” “I’m a perfumer.” He paused, the motion of throwing the gloves away slowing down. “The deep burns on the knuckles might leave scarring. We need to monitor for infection. We can’t rule out a skin graft later if the mobility is compromised.” “Will I be able to use my fingers?” “It’s hard to say. If the scar tissue contracts, your range of motion will be limited.” Rebecca burst into the exam room just as they were wrapping my hand in gauze. “Diana! Are you insane? Why didn’t you call me? Your hand—” “I need you to do a few things for me.” She stopped mid-rant, her eyes red. “First, block Gavin everywhere. Phone, email, socials. Everything.” “Done.” “Second, find me a flight to Oregon. Tomorrow morning.” “You’re leaving?” “There’s a botanical estate in the Willamette Valley. I’ve been talking to the owner about a private R&D residency. I need to go.” “Wait, your hand is like this and you’re—” “Rebecca.” She went quiet. I looked down at the thick white cocoon of gauze. Beneath it was a ruin of broken skin and shattered dreams. A perfumer’s hand. “Buy the ticket,” I said. “The earliest one.” She didn’t argue. She pulled out her phone and started tapping. Blocking, deleting, clearing the history. Then, she stopped. “Diana… you need to see this.”

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I still can’t believe I’m losing my mind over a mediocre, thirty-something man in my office. Derek is married. He has a stay-at-home wife who has made raising their children and managing his existence her sole, holy crusade. Every day at 5:00 PM, he clocks out and walks into a life he doesn’t have to orchestrate. Dinner is hot. The bath is drawn. His version of fatherhood consists of tossing a toddler in the air for fifteen minutes before claiming exhaustion. He hasn’t touched a sponge or scheduled a pediatrician appointment in his life. He lives with the blissful, unburdened ignorance of a college freshman. Then there’s me. I finish a grueling fourteen-hour day and unlock the door to my three-thousand-square-foot luxury penthouse. It’s breathtaking. It’s architectural perfection. And it is completely, suffocatingly empty. I actually love children. Biologically, logistically, having a child wouldn’t be impossible—I’d just need to carve out a year. But I am at the absolute precipice of my career. I’m terrified that stepping back to give birth will derail my trajectory, so I stay frozen. Derek and I are gunning for the same promotion. If this were a fair, one-on-one fight? I’d obliterate him. But it’s not fair. I’m not competing against Derek; I’m competing against Derek and the invisible infrastructure of his wife. We both work a grueling day, but he goes home to recharge in a sanctuary built entirely for his comfort, while I go home to an echo chamber. Thinking about it makes my blood boil. I realized something fundamental: I don’t need a husband. I need a wife. Just imagine it. If I had someone managing my life the way Derek’s wife manages his… God, I would be unstoppable. 1 Fueled by caffeine and spite, I immediately registered with Elite Connections, the most exclusive matchmaking agency in the city. My consultant, Diane, was thrilled with my profile. Within days, she had a lineup of weekend dates. I showed up to the boutique coffee shop looking flawless—a silk slip dress, a sharp blazer, and my favorite stilettos. Whether I found a match or not, I was going to exude absolute, weaponized confidence. Diane had vetted them “according to my standards.” Candidate One sat down, looked me up and down like a used car, and sneered. “When we’re together, I don’t want my woman dressing so… flashy. You’ll need to tone that down.” I practically felt my eyes roll into the back of my skull. Bold of you to assume we’re getting together, considering I don’t date men who dress like substitute math teachers. Candidate Two had clearly put effort into his appearance. His eyes lit up when he saw me. “When we get married, you won’t even have to work. I’ll take care of you.” I plastered on a painfully polite smile. “And what is your annual salary?” He puffed out his chest. “I make sixty thousand a year. Full benefits, 401k match. It’s a great setup. You can quit, stay home with the kids, and I’ll give you five hundred dollars a month as a personal allowance.” My smile splintered. I looked down at my two-thousand-dollar Jimmy Choos and seriously considered taking one off and embedding the heel in his forehead. 2 Candidate Three looked the part of a finance bro. We actually had a decent rapport, speaking the same corporate language. Finally, we pivoted to the future. A calculated glint flashed behind his designer frames. “I assume, Jocelyn, that as a modern woman, you’re open to modern financial arrangements?” “I’m listening.” “Would you be open to going fifty-fifty on all household expenses?” Split the bills? Wait, I get a domestic partner without taking on his financial burden? I nodded enthusiastically. He smiled, leaning in. “And cohabitation before marriage?” A trial run without the legal mess? I kept nodding. “Great,” he said. “My mother always says that women these days have so many fertility issues. Would you be open to having a child before we officially sign the marriage certificate, just to be sure?” My jaw twitched. The polite facade evaporated. “Tell you what,” I said, voice dropping to a deadly calm. “Would you be open to adopting? Would you be open to quitting your job, staying home full-time, and managing my household? Don’t worry, I can match whatever salary you’re making right now.” His face flushed a violent, blotchy red. “I make a hundred and fifty grand a year! You want me to be a house-husband? Scrub floors? And you won’t even give me a biological kid?” He scoffed, eyeing me with sudden disgust. “You might be gorgeous, but if you’re not going to breed, what use are you to me?” It took every ounce of my Wall Street restraint not to laugh in his face. A hundred and fifty grand? I thought. Honey, I make five times that on a bad year. He stormed off. I sat there, lazily stirring my iced latte, waiting for Candidate Four. He arrived. Visually, he passed. I decided to skip the dance and cut straight to the chase. “I will give you a five-thousand-dollar monthly allowance—pure disposable income—with all living expenses covered by me. In exchange, you stay home full-time and manage the household. Can you handle that?” His eyes went wide like saucers. “Yes! Absolutely. I hate working anyway; I’m a total homebody. I don’t really know how to clean, though. Oh, and when we get together, my parents are going to move in with us.” My smile shattered into a million pieces. He was still talking. “We don’t own a place, so we’ll have to live at yours. Do you rent or own?” I was looking for a partner, not a parasite. A stay-at-home husband who doesn’t do chores? What is the point of that? 3 After Number Four left, I slumped back against the velvet booth, staring blankly at the ceiling. Why was it so impossibly hard to find a wife? Diane slid into the seat across from me, looking apologetic. “Jocelyn, you’re asking a man to stay home, do the housework, and you’re not offering him a biological child. What kind of man is going to accept that? Maybe you need to lower your expectations. Compromise on something.” I stared at her. I was the one with the money. Why should I compromise? “Upgrade my membership,” I said flatly. “Put me in the Diamond tier.” A bigger pool meant better fish. Diane’s face instantly lit up with the promise of a commission, and she stood up to leave. Suddenly, from the booth just behind the half-wall next to me, a woman’s sharp, condescending voice cut through the café chatter. “You deliver food for a living. How exactly do you plan to support me? This manicure alone cost me two hundred bucks—how many deliveries do you have to make just to pay for my nails? And I heard you have a kid. Is it yours? Because I am not playing stepmom.” A man’s voice answered. It was a beautiful voice—low, quiet, and incredibly melodic. “I can give you my entire paycheck. I just need someone to play the role of a mother for Theo. Just until he’s a little older and doesn’t need that maternal figure as desperately. We can sign a prenuptial agreement. We can divorce after.” The woman scoffed loudly. “You want me to waste my best years for whatever pennies you scrape together? That wouldn’t even cover my shopping habit.” The sharp clack of her heels echoed as she stormed toward the exit. My curiosity was piqued. I stood up, walked around the partition, and looked at the source of that beautiful voice. When I saw him, I swear, my cold, corporate heart skipped a beat. An angel? 4 He was sitting in the booth, looking down at his hands. His hair fell effortlessly across his forehead, casting shadows over ridiculously long eyelashes. A straight nose, soft lips, and a jawline sharp enough to cut glass. He was wearing a simple, inexpensive linen shirt, but it was immaculately pressed. Not a single wrinkle. Sensing my unapologetic stare, the young man looked up. His eyes were a stunning, translucent amber. They looked like they were catching the light from within. I didn’t hesitate. I slid directly into the seat across from him. “Jocelyn Pierce. Twenty-seven. High-level finance. What do you think of me?” He blinked, stunned, before the implication landed. A faint, gorgeous flush crept up his neck. “I’m Rowan,” he said, his voice dropping so low I had to lean in. “Rowan Gallagher. Twenty-two. And right now… I’m a delivery driver.” “Twenty-two?” I arched an eyebrow. “Fresh out of college?” He nodded. I tapped my manicured nails against the table, the gears in my head turning. A younger man. My friends always joked about the sheer, unbridled stamina of a man in his early twenties. I had spent my twenties ruthlessly climbing the corporate ladder; I had zero romantic history. But honestly? As long as he could run a house, I didn’t care if he was younger. “Can you clean?” I asked. “Can you do laundry? Cook?” Rowan looked utterly confused, but he slowly nodded. My heart soared. Was the universe actually handing me exactly what I wanted? But I remembered the horrible woman mentioning a child. I needed to clear that up. I don’t do messy entanglements or baby-mama drama. 5 “You have a child?” I asked, keeping my tone neutral. Rowan bit his lower lip. He nodded, then shook his head. “Is that a yes or a no?” “He’s not biologically mine,” Rowan said softly, his amber eyes dropping to the table. “He’s my sister’s. She and her husband… they passed away.” The profound grief in his voice hit me like a physical blow. God, I had just stomped right onto a landmine. “I’m so sorry.” “How old is the baby? You’re raising him on your own?” I asked, my curiosity softening into something closer to empathy. He nodded again. “He’s two.” Two years old. Past the newborn nightmare phase, able to communicate, peak cute-stage. Child acquired. Check. I leaned back, flashing him my most practiced, devastating smile, and ran a hand through my hair. “Would you be opposed to an older woman?” Rowan’s face went violently, beautifully red. I leaned forward, dropping into negotiation mode. “I’ll give you a five-thousand-dollar monthly cash allowance, with all household and living expenses on a separate card. All you have to do is manage the house and take care of the boy.” Rowan swallowed hard, his voice barely a whisper. “I… I couldn’t do that.” “Why not? Are you making five grand a month on a bike in the heat? You could make that from the comfort of a luxury apartment, without having to brave the weather.” He dropped his head, his hands gripping the edge of the table. “I’m… I’m not an escort. I don’t want a sugar mommy—” I burst out laughing, the sound ringing through the quiet café. “Who said anything about buying an escort? I’m legitimately looking for a hus—” I caught myself. The word wife had almost slipped out. “A husband,” I corrected smoothly. God, I really just wanted a wife. 6 At the word “husband,” the tips of Rowan’s ears turned crimson. I couldn’t help but tease him. “You were just pitching a marriage of convenience to that awful woman. Why so shy now?” He peeked up at me through his lashes, then quickly looked away. “It… it’s different. I was just trying to find Theo a mother figure. A contract marriage. But you…” He glanced at me again, the blush spreading to his pale cheeks. My god. Were all recent college grads this devastatingly sweet? Diane, having noticed my extended absence, trotted over to our booth, a customer-service smile plastered on her face. “Jocelyn! About that Diamond tier upgrade—” I waved a hand dismissively. “Cancel it. And don’t worry about refunding my initial fee.” The candidates she brought me were trash, but if she hadn’t set up the appointments, I wouldn’t have been in this café to find my angel. Consider the fee a finder’s tip. Diane’s smile froze when I canceled the upgrade, but the promise of keeping the non-refundable deposit thawed it quickly. She looked between me and Rowan. “Well… I wish you both a lifetime of happiness!” She practically sprinted away, probably terrified I’d ask for my money back. I turned my attention back to the boy across from me. “Let’s be absolutely clear,” I said, my tone shifting to purely professional. “You move into my place. You stay home full-time and raise the boy. Are you absolutely sure you can handle that?” Rowan looked into my eyes, held my gaze for a fraction of a second, then lowered his lashes and nodded. Gorgeous, domestic husband acquired. Check. 7 Looking at his flushed face, I decided the first order of business was a full medical workup. I needed a healthy partner. Since it was getting late, I took Rowan to a high-end restaurant nearby. After ordering, I noticed the seafood spread and added a plate of chilled jumbo shrimp. While we waited for the food, we laid out our histories. I learned that his parents had died when he was young, and his older sister had practically raised him. Shortly after he graduated college, his sister and brother-in-law were killed in a car accident, leaving him alone with a toddler. He was juggling food delivery gigs just to keep food in the baby’s mouth. Listening to him, my chest tightened. It felt like the universe had a sick sense of humor when it came to good people. I gave him the abbreviated version of my life: former Wall Street shark, currently a senior executive at a major financial firm. When the food arrived, it was plated like modern art. I did what any millennial woman would do—took aesthetic photos of every dish and posted them to my Instagram story. Almost immediately, my phone started buzzing with notifications from colleagues and friends. I absentmindedly fired off a few replies. Rowan sat perfectly still, waiting for me to finish. The longer I looked at him, the more pleased I felt. I picked up my fork and placed a piece of fish on his plate. “Don’t be polite. Eat.” “Thank you, Jocelyn,” he murmured, his face pinking again. I rested my chin on my hand, watching him. He ate the food I gave him, then cast a quick, hesitant glance at my long, manicured nails. Slowly, he put on a pair of plastic gloves from the table caddy and reached for the shrimp. He peeled them methodically. When he was done, a neat row of pristine, pink shrimp sat perfectly arranged on a small plate. He pushed the plate across the table toward me. The subtext was loud and clear. I couldn’t hide my smile. “For me?” He nodded, gesturing slightly toward my hands. “Your nails. I didn’t want you to ruin them.” Oh, wow. We weren’t even married yet, and I was already reaping the benefits of a wife. I didn’t hesitate. I speared a shrimp with my fork, dragged it through the cocktail sauce, and ate it. It tasted like absolute victory. 8 After lunch, I drove Rowan straight to a premier private clinic. He looked utterly bewildered. I kept my face blank, entirely composed. “Corporate life is stressful. I’m getting a routine physical to make sure I’m holding up. Figured you should get one too.” I quietly slipped a comprehensive reproductive and sexual health screening into his package and marked it as a priority. When he emerged from the examination rooms hours later, his face, ears, and neck were burning bright red. I pulled out my phone. “Give me your number. I’ll text you when the results come in.” He fumbled with his phone, clearly flustered, and we exchanged contacts. “Is there anywhere you want to go right now?” I asked. He shook his head, looking hesitant. Did I intimidate him that much? I sighed, softening my voice. “Rowan, just say what’s on your mind. We’re going to be family soon.” He looked at me, his amber eyes earnest. “Theo is the only family I have left. He has to live with me. But I promise, I won’t play favorites. I’ll take care of your children exactly the way I take care of Theo.” Wait. What? My kids? Looking at the absolute sincerity in his eyes, I was momentarily speechless. A laugh bubbled up in my throat. “My… children?” He bit his lip. “This morning… you said my job would be staying home and taking care of the kids…” The realization hit me. He thought I was a single mother hiring him to raise my secret offspring. “Oh my god.” I threw my head back and laughed until my ribs ached. When I finally caught my breath, I stepped into his space, went up on my tiptoes, and gently pinched his cheek. “I don’t have any kids, Rowan. When I said ‘take care of the child,’ I meant yours.” God, he was tall. Over six-two, easily. And his skin was incredibly soft. He stared down at me, looking even more profoundly confused. It was too cute. I pinched his cheek again. “I don’t plan on having biological children,” I explained softly. “You bringing Theo into the mix is perfect. It saves me the trouble of adopting. Your only job is to raise him well.” I grabbed his wrist and pulled him toward my Porsche. “Send me your address. Let’s go meet the kid.” 9 As we navigated toward his neighborhood, Rowan shifted uncomfortably in the passenger seat. “The streets get really narrow up ahead. You won’t be able to park this.” I had to pull the Porsche to the curb a few blocks away. Stepping out into the neighborhood, I immediately understood his hesitation. It was… gritty. I felt an absurd flash of a savior complex—like I was Richard Gere in Pretty Woman, but with a much worse zip code. But looking at the beautiful, gentle man walking beside me, I firmly shut that thought down. A husband without a ring was just a boyfriend, and I wasn’t here to do charity; I was here to secure my future. We dodged overflowing dumpsters and stopped in front of a crumbling apartment building. My heels echoed sharply in the concrete stairwell, the sound grating on my nerves by the third flight. By the time we hit the sixth floor, I was genuinely out of breath. Rowan unlocked the door. The apartment was tiny—the entire place was probably smaller than my living room. But the moment I stepped inside, the atmosphere shifted. It was a classic two-bedroom, but it was incredibly warm. Spotless. Everything had its place. I glanced at the shoe rack, looking for guest slippers. Rowan noticed. “You don’t need to take off your shoes,” he said quickly. I stepped into the living room. The walls were decorated with inexpensive but beautifully composed prints. Toys were neatly corralled in a woven basket. I mentally checked another box. He really did know how to keep a house. “Where’s the baby?” I asked. “I left him with the neighbor across the hall when I went to the café. Let me go grab him.” He slipped out the door. I barely had time to take a sip of the water he’d poured me before he was back, carrying a toddler on his hip. I stood up and leaned in. Theo was soft and pale, with massive, dark eyes like polished obsidian. I let out an internal sigh of relief. He was a beautiful baby. Those big eyes stared at me with pure, unadulterated curiosity. He was so cute I had the sudden, violent urge to squish his cheeks. Breathe, Jocelyn, I told myself. Wait for the medical results. Once the ink on the marriage license is dry, this kid is officially yours. I had seen the baby. It was time to go. Rowan carried Theo downstairs to walk me to my car. Standing by the Porsche, I reached into my console, pulled out a thick stack of hundred-dollar bills I kept for emergencies, and tucked it into Theo’s little hands. “I didn’t have time to stop for a gift. Buy him some toys.” Rowan’s eyes widened in panic. “Jocelyn, no, I can’t take this.” He tried to hand it back, but I smoothly ducked into the driver’s seat. I liked spending money on my things. I rolled the window down halfway. “Wait for my text.” I pulled away without giving him a chance to argue. Glancing in the rearview mirror, I watched Rowan standing on the curb, holding the baby. The thought that soon, someone would be standing at the door seeing me off every morning… God, it felt amazing. 10 I walked into my three-thousand-square-foot penthouse. The silence was deafening. It was cold, vast, and utterly devoid of life. No one asking about my day. No hot shower running. No dinner on the stove. I sighed, dropping my keys on the counter. I thought of Rowan, and a spark of hope flared in my chest. Stay healthy, kid, I thought to the universe. I need a healthy wife. I looked around. My blazer was slung carelessly over the back of the sofa. A stained coffee mug sat on the glass coffee table. My shoes were kicked off in two entirely different time zones. I collapsed onto the sofa, wincing when the hardware of a forgotten handbag dug into my spine. I wanted to cry. I absolutely loathed housework. I used to employ a housekeeper, Martha. At first, she was great. But as she got comfortable, the matriarchal entitlement crept in. She started making passive-aggressive comments. Girls shouldn’t spend money so recklessly. It doesn’t matter how much a woman makes, she just needs a good husband. It’s such a waste for a single girl to live in a place this big. I tolerated it because she kept the house spotless and left me hot meals. Then, one evening, I came home to find a strange man sitting on my custom Italian leather sofa. Martha smiled proudly. “This is my nephew. He’s single. A woman your age, Jocelyn, if you don’t settle down soon, you’ll be stuck with divorced men. My nephew doesn’t mind that you’re a bit older. Older women know how to take care of a man.” I didn’t even yell. I just walked into my bedroom, called the agency, and had her removed from my property within the hour. After that, the parade of housekeepers all followed the same arc: they started fine, then eventually tried to mother me or critique my lifestyle. I was paying them a premium; why did I feel like I was hiring a mother-in-law? I stopped using full-time help, relying on a weekly cleaning service just to keep the place sanitary. Thinking about it exhausted me. I sat up and pulled up a delivery app to see what sad, lukewarm meal I was going to eat for dinner. 11 Monday morning. Business as usual. The moment I walked into the bullpen, Derek Larsen intercepted me, holding out a pink bakery box. “Jocelyn, try one of my wife’s homemade cupcakes. The VP already had two. Said they were fantastic.” Derek. My sworn nemesis. The firm was currently debating who would lead our newest, highest-stakes acquisition project—me or Derek. The mention of his wife’s domestic perfection was a calculated strike. I felt that familiar, ugly spike of jealousy. I took the box with a smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “Thanks, Derek. When I get the lead on the new project, I’ll be sure to treat you to dinner.” Derek’s smile stiffened. “Don’t count your chickens, Jocelyn.” The air between us practically crackled with hostility. I gave a dismissive little hum and walked past him. I didn’t have time to participate in a staring contest with a man who peaked in high school; I had pitch decks to review. Back in my office, my assistant, Chloe—wait, no, let’s call her Sarah. No, Sarah’s banned too. My assistant, Emily, walked in with a stack of folders. “Ms. Pierce, these need your signature.” I pointed to the edge of my desk. “Leave them.” I pushed the pink bakery box toward her. “Take this to the breakroom. Let the interns have it.” I wasn’t about to eat anything Derek Larsen handed me. I blazed through the documents, signing where needed, kicking back the ones with sloppy formatting. When I finally looked up at the clock, it was 10:55 AM. Two emails pinged in my inbox. The clinic results. I opened mine first. Perfect health. All those 5:00 AM Pilates classes were paying off. I opened Rowan’s. I scoured the PDF, checking every single metric, right down to the STI panel. He was in perfect, pristine health. A thrill shot through me. He was healthy. It was time to bring him home. My era of coming home to a hot meal and a warm house was officially beginning. 12 I FaceTimed Rowan. It rang for a long time before he finally answered. “Jocelyn?” I stared at the screen. He was wearing a bright neon delivery helmet, his face flushed and glistening with sweat. My chest tightened. “Are you out on a delivery right now?” He nodded, a bead of sweat rolling down his jawline. Oh my god. My internal monologue was screaming. It’s been one day and my beautiful angel is out here suffering in the trenches. “Where’s Theo?” Rowan angled the camera down. Theo was strapped into a makeshift child seat on the front of the electric bike. His little cheeks were flushed dark red from the heat, though his dark eyes were still bright. Silence hung between us. Two beautiful, miserable souls baking in the sun. “Drop your location,” I ordered. “I’m coming to get you. Find some shade.” God, I was getting soft in my old age. My maternal instinct was apparently highly susceptible to pretty faces. When I pulled the Porsche up to the GPS pin, the two of them were huddled under a meager tree, looking like a tragic Dickens illustration. I rolled down the window. “Get in.” Rowan hesitated, looking at his electric bike. “I can just ride behind you—” “Get in the car, Rowan. I’ll pay someone to come pick up the bike later.” He didn’t argue. He clutched Theo to his chest and slid into the leather passenger seat. We weren’t going to the courthouse looking like this. I threw the car into drive and headed straight for the nearest Ritz-Carlton. 13 I glanced over at him as we pulled into the valet line. “Do you have your ID on you?” Rowan looked up at the towering luxury hotel, his throat bobbing. “Is this… is this really okay?” I caught the deep, frantic blush rising up his neck and instantly realized what he was thinking. I barked a laugh. “What exactly is going through your head? I booked a room so you two can take a shower. We’re going to City Hall this afternoon to get married.” Rowan realized his mistake, and the blush violently overtook his entire face. He buried his chin into Theo’s hair, mortified. I couldn’t stop smiling. He was so incredibly pure. Up in the suite, Rowan disappeared into the marble bathroom to shower, leaving me alone with the toddler. We stared at each other. Theo was sitting on the plush carpet. I glanced toward the bathroom door, then reached out a finger and gently poked his soft, chubby cheek. Theo tilted his head, looking at me with profound confusion. God, he is so cute. I couldn’t help myself. I leaned in and planted a loud kiss right on his cheek. Theo’s eyes went wide as saucers, and he slapped his little hands over the spot I’d kissed. Even cuter. I scooped him up into my lap and peppered his face with kisses. I tried to soften my voice so I didn’t sound like a corporate shark about to eat a seal. “What’s your name, baby?” Theo went completely rigid in my arms, terrified to move. I sighed internally. Was my aura that intimidating? I was just about to put him down when a tiny, bird-like voice chirped against my collarbone. “Theo.” I looked down. He was peering up at me through his lashes. The moment we made eye contact, he shoved his face back into my chest. A shy kid? My heart completely melted. I hoisted him up so we were face to face. I looked into those massive, dark eyes, then buried my face in his neck and took a deep breath. He smelled like baby lotion and sunshine. 14 Right in the middle of my aggressive baby-snuggling, the bathroom door clicked open. Rowan stepped out. He was wearing the hotel’s plush, deep-V bathrobe, aggressively towel-drying his hair. Every step he took offered a distracting glimpse of a pale, heavily muscled chest. Damn it, I thought. Why is it only noon? I set Theo down on the sofa, stood up, and crossed the room. I reached out, grabbed the lapels of his robe, and yanked them firmly together—allowing my hands to linger just a second longer than necessary. He was definitely in shape. “Careful. Don’t catch a cold. We have important paperwork to sign this afternoon,” I said, trying desperately to sound authoritative. The sliver of exposed skin at his throat flushed pink. My eyes were having a field day. I looked up at his face. His cheeks were flushed from the steam, and his amber eyes looked wet and luminous. Who could possibly resist this? I couldn’t. I reached up, framed his face with my hands, and kissed him. Right on the lips. Forgive my lack of willpower. He was going to be my husband in three hours anyway; I was just taking an advance. Remembering there was a toddler in the room, I pulled back before I did something completely unhinged, like drag him into the king-sized bed. The doorbell rang. Room service had arrived, along with the bellhop carrying the clothes I’d had a concierge go out and buy. Rowan, his face practically glowing red, practically sprinted back into the bathroom to change. I set up Theo’s food on the coffee table. When Rowan emerged, the seductive bathrobe was gone, replaced by crisp dark denim and a perfectly fitted white button-down. He looked like the poster boy for ivy-league youth. I thought of Derek Larsen again. Derek liked to act like he was still a hotshot frat boy, but at thirty-five, it was just sad. A guy in his thirties pretending to be a kid is tragic; an actual twenty-two-year-old is a masterpiece. Thinking about Derek annoyed me, but looking back at my beautiful, young fiancé instantly fixed my mood. After lunch, we took an Uber straight to the courthouse. When the three of us walked out an hour later, it was official. We were a legally binding family unit. I had a wife. And a kid. Check and mate. 15 That afternoon, we moved their meager belongings from the rundown apartment into my penthouse. Rowan stood in the massive, echoing foyer, holding Theo, looking completely overwhelmed. I grabbed his arm and pulled him inside. “This is your home now. Don’t act like a guest.” Remembering our agreement, I pulled a sleek black debit card from my wallet and handed it to him. “Your five grand allowance will hit this on the first of every month.” Then I pulled out my Amex Platinum. “This is for the household. Groceries, clothes, whatever you need. Don’t check the price tags.” Rowan stared at the plastic like it was radioactive. I wanted to stay and ease him into it, but my phone started buzzing violently. The office. They were calling an emergency meeting. I had to go. A true mogul doesn’t let domestic bliss delay a hostile takeover. I patted Rowan’s shoulder. “Take the afternoon to get acquainted with the layout. I have to go secure the bag.” I arrived at the office just in time. The boardroom was packed. The agenda: deciding who would lead the $400 million merger project. The board openly analyzed Derek and me. “Derek’s home life is stable,” one VP noted. “He has no domestic distractions. He can dedicate one hundred percent of his mental bandwidth to the merger.” “But Jocelyn’s pedigree is flawless,” another countered. “Ivy League, Wall Street background. Her track record here is brutal but effective.” It came down to a vote. A dead tie. The CEO held the tiebreaker, and I could see his eyes drifting toward Derek. I cleared my throat, the sound cutting through the tension. “Richard. Give me the project. If I miss the Q3 targets, I will submit my resignation. You won’t even have to fire me. Does Derek want to match that wager?” The entire room pivoted to look at Derek. Derek’s face went rigid. Of course he couldn’t take that bet. His entire family survived on his paycheck; he couldn’t risk his mortgage on a game of corporate chicken. The CEO saw Derek’s hesitation. The energy shifted immediately. I got the project. Was I terrified of betting my job? A little. But a headhunter had offered me a VP role at a rival firm three days ago. I knew my worth. When you have a parachute, you can afford to jump. I took my core team out to a high-end steakhouse to celebrate the win. 16 Dinner transitioned into drinks at an upscale lounge. Fortunately, I inherited my father’s iron liver. I wouldn’t say I never got drunk, but I could put away neat scotch while my colleagues were slurring their words. I called a luxury town car to take me home. When I unlocked my front door, I genuinely thought the alcohol had hit me, because the glare coming off the hardwood floors nearly blinded me. I backed up and checked the unit number. Yes. My apartment. I stepped inside. The floors looked like glass. In the entryway closet, my scattered stilettos were meticulously aligned. My handbags were displayed on the upper shelves, organized by size and color gradient. I stood frozen in the foyer for a solid ten seconds, convinced I had broken into a model home. Before today, coming home meant stepping into a cold, chaotic void. Tonight, it was brilliantly lit, immaculate, and smelled faintly of expensive citrus and cedar. I swapped my heels for slippers and walked further in. The living room was transformed. The cashmere throw on the sofa was folded with military precision. The decorative pillows were arranged symmetrically. The towering stack of industry magazines th

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The sneeze caught me off guard, sharp and involuntary, just as I sat down for dinner. My husband, Gary, a prestigious professor of ophthalmology, had always treated me with a clinical sort of indifference. But tonight, he paused, his chopsticks hovering in mid-air. Without looking up, he said in a flat, measured tone that we were getting rid of the plants on the balcony. He wouldn’t keep them anymore, he said, because my allergies were clearly acting up again. His grad student, sitting across from us, let out a soft gasp of admiration. “Professor, you’re such a romantic,” he chirped. “I know how much those orchids mean to you. You’ve spent ten years nursing them.” Instead of warmth, a cold leaden weight settled in my chest. Gary loved those flowers more than anything. On our wedding night five years ago, my pollen allergy had flared so badly I broke out in hives. I had sobbed, begging him to move the pots outside. He had looked at me with nothing but irritation, snapping that I was being “dramatic” and “jealous of a plant.” Three years ago, when I was pregnant and suffering from a sudden onset of seizures, his colleague in OB-GYN warned him that the heavy fragrance in our apartment might be aggravating my condition. Gary had merely sneered. He questioned the “genetics” of a child who couldn’t handle a little pollen, suggesting the baby wasn’t “fit” to be his. The baby didn’t make it. Just as he’d predicted, in the cruelest way possible. And now, because of one tiny sneeze, he was voluntarily giving up his decade-long passion? This sudden, belated tenderness felt wrong. My eyes darted nervously toward the floor-to-ceiling windows of the balcony. There, on the glass, I saw it: two sets of overlapping handprints. One set was small, dainty, and distinctly not mine. Right then, the student—who had been scrolling through his phone—spoke up in surprise. “Wait, Paige just posted. She’s having a massive allergy flare-up too.” The world seemed to tilt. Paige was Gary’s star pupil, the girl he’d mentored with obsessive focus. She was also the woman he had emotionally drifted toward three years ago. Blood rushed to my head, then turned to ice. After dinner, I didn’t say a word. I watched from the window as Gary walked his student to the car. As soon as the taillights faded, I dialed my best friend, Jordan, a ruthless divorce attorney. My voice was eerily calm. “Get the post-nuptial agreement out of the safe. The one he signed three years ago—the ‘at-fault’ clause for the house and assets.” “Clara?” Jordan’s voice sharpened. “What happened?” “I’m done, Jordan. I’m leaving him.” 1. “Did he cheat again?” Jordan asked, her voice dropping an octave. I stared at the congealing grease in my soup bowl. I couldn’t help but let out a jagged, bitter laugh. “Yeah. But you have to give him credit for loyalty. It’s still Paige.” The line went silent for a beat. Then, Jordan erupted. “That absolute piece of trash! If Paige hadn’t mismanaged your medication three years ago, you wouldn’t have lost a six-month-old—” She stopped herself. She knew the territory was too raw. During the six months after I lost the baby, I tried to end it three times. The first time was pills. The second was the bridge. The third was a blade in the bathroom. The first two times, Gary thought I was “performing for attention.” It wasn’t until the third time, when he kicked down the locked bathroom door and slipped in the red pool on the floor, that he finally felt something like terror. To keep me alive, the man who was usually a pillar of cold, intellectual pride knelt by my hospital bed, his eyes bloodshot and desperate. “Clara, I was wrong. Please don’t leave me alone…” Gary was an orphan. He had grown up at my parents’ dinner table since middle school. I was the only family he had left. After that night, he deleted Paige from everything. He signed that agreement—forfeiting everything if he ever strayed again—and swore he would spend his life making it up to me. It’s only been three years. I guess even geniuses like Gary can’t help but return to their old habits. “Do you have proof?” Jordan asked, pulling me back to the present. I looked at the hanging ivy plant by the bedroom door. Tucked inside was a tiny, high-def camera Gary had installed himself three years ago. He told me it was so he could check the app and make sure I was “safe” while he was at the hospital. He’d stopped mentioning the camera after a month, claiming he’d switched phones and lost the login. It turned out his “concern” for my safety had an expiration date. I went to the drawer and pulled out his old phone, the one he kept meticulously charged. He told me it was full of “precious memories of us” that he couldn’t bear to delete. I had believed him. Until now. I tried the old passcode—our anniversary. Incorrect. My heart hammered against my ribs. I felt like I was being strangled. I took a deep breath, my fingers trembling, and punched in four digits: 0907. The day he first met Paige three years ago. Unlocked. The bitterness at the back of my throat was a physical weight I couldn’t swallow. I forced myself to tap on the gallery. 10,875 photos. 319 videos. 1,025 screenshots of texts. All of them—every single one—of Paige. As for me, his wife? There was one photo. A scanned copy of our marriage license. In the thumbnail next to it, I looked sallow, my hair greasy, dark circles under my eyes from seventy-two hours of overtime. I looked like a ghost of a woman. Next to Gary’s polished, handsome face, we looked like strangers from different worlds. I found a screenshot of a text Paige had sent him: “Gosh… Professor, do you honestly not have nightmares waking up to that face every day?” Gary’s reply was a single word: “Yes.” I stared at that word until it blurred. Yes. He forgot that the reason I was working myself to death back then was to save up for the down payment on a house closer to the hospital, so he wouldn’t have to commute while he was on call. Every sacrifice I made was a brick in a wall he was now using to bury me. I opened the camera app, but my finger froze. He had never even logged in. A cold realization washed over me. I stood on a chair and tore down the “security camera” he had placed there to watch over me for three years. It was a dummy. A plastic shell. Empty. 2. A sharp, throbbing pain spiked in my temples. I did something I’d never done—I raised my hand and slapped my own face, hard. “Clara… you stupid, pathetic fool.” Just then, his old phone pinged with a WhatsApp notification. Paige: “Thanks for the allergy meds, Professor! I’m feeling so much better already~” Paige: “You must be exhausted with those surgeries. Don’t forget our three-year anniversary on December 20th. I have a surprise for you~” December 20th? I had to grab the dresser to keep from collapsing. Three years ago, on December 19th, I went to the ER with an eye infection. Paige, the intern on duty, “accidentally” prescribed me a medication strictly forbidden for pregnant women. I spent the 20th hemorrhaging in a surgery suite, nearly dying as I lost my son. And that was the day my husband of ten years decided to start an affair with the girl who killed our child? How dare you, Gary? Before my rage could boil over, a voice memo from Gary to Paige popped up: “As long as I can get you into that PhD program in Zurich, no amount of surgery is too much. My biggest regret is that I can’t marry you. Using every resource I have to lift you up to the world stage is the only dream I have left.” To lift her up. The fury in my veins felt like it was turning into ash. The front door opened. Gary walked in, carrying a small container of sliced mangoes from the market downstairs. He saw me holding his old phone. A tiny flicker of a frown crossed his face, but he quickly smoothed it into his usual mask of calm. I stared at him, my eyes burning with unshed tears. He acted as if nothing was wrong, setting the fruit on the table. “You said you wanted these yesterday.” He turned to wash his hands. I followed him, my voice cracking. “Gary. Are you going to explain this?” At the sink, he didn’t even look up. “Explain?” He let out a soft, dry chuckle. “There’s nothing to explain. You’ve seen it. She’s the love of my life.” His profile was caught in the shadows, looking sharp and utterly heartless. “You made a scene and forced the hospital to fire her back then, ruining her career. Sending her abroad now is my way of apologizing for you. It’s penance. If you want to remain ‘Mrs. Ward,’ then stay quiet. Do you understand?” The old Clara would have screamed. She would have broken plates. But I felt like a machine that had been switched off. I looked at this man I had loved for two decades—the boy I’d shared my lunch with, the man I’d built a life for. He looked at me with nothing but amused contempt. He wasn’t hiding it anymore. He was cheating, he was proud of it, and he assumed his “stupid, soft-hearted” wife would just take it. I looked at the fruit on the table. “How much were those mangoes?” Gary blinked, seemingly relieved that I was “backing down.” His tone softened. “Five dollars.” I started to laugh. A low, jagged sound that shook my whole body. I had seen the photos in the hidden album. A $10,000 Cartier ring. A $40,000 Hermès bag. A condo worth nearly a million dollars titled in Paige’s name only. And the $400,000 he’d tucked away in a European account for her “living expenses” in Zurich. He had drained our joint life savings to “lift up” his mistress. “Gary, do you remember what you said the day you proposed?” I asked quietly as he walked toward his study. He paused for a second, then sighed with utter boredom. “I don’t remember.” Slam. The door shut between us. 3. Gary slept in the study that night. I spent the hours in a daze, talking to Jordan until the sun came up. Gary hadn’t always been this cold. Back in our small hometown, he was the local prodigy—brilliant, handsome, from a wealthy family. Until his parents died in a horrific car crash and greedy relatives picked the estate clean. At eleven, he was discarded like trash. I was the one who found him, shivering and hungry in an alleyway, and brought him home. My parents had been the Wards’ driver and housekeeper for years. Out of a sense of old loyalty, they took him in. For the next twenty years, my parents treated him like a son. He and I were inseparable. He was cold to everyone else, but he had a soft spot for me. In high school, people made bets on whether a genius like him could ever love a “mediocre” girl like me. He won a track meet that year, and instead of celebrating with the cool kids, he pushed through the crowd and collapsed onto me, his heart racing against mine. I can still smell the scent of mint on his jersey. “It’s a good thing,” he whispered for everyone to hear, “that I happen to love a ‘mediocre’ girl named Clara.” The dream shifted. The minty scent of the boy turned into the expensive cologne of the man. At twenty-eight, he finally proposed in front of our families and his prestigious colleagues. He held a simple band and looked at me with a fire in his eyes that I thought would never die. “For twenty years, you were my reason to live. Clara, I swear, I will spend the rest of my life making you the happiest woman in the world. Marry me. I will love you forever.” … “I stopped loving Clara a long time ago. But right now is the critical window for your fellowship. I need the marriage to keep her stable, otherwise, a community college dropout like her will never stop hounding you…” I stood outside Gary’s clinic, listening to him coo at Paige inside. My heart, which had ached all night, suddenly went numb. A community college dropout? I felt a ghost of a smile on my lips. He knew damn well the only reason I didn’t finish my degree was because I’d taken a knife wound to the hand protecting him from a group of thugs. I couldn’t write fast enough to finish my exams after that. When someone stops loving you, even your breathing is an offense. A nurse at the reception desk saw me standing there. “Ma’am, you’re in the wrong place. Prenatal check-ups are at the end of the hall to the right.” Her voice startled the two inside. Paige turned pale. Gary’s eyes dropped to my stomach, and a flicker of something—was it excitement?—crossed his face. “Are you pregnant again?” The question acted like a match to a powder keg for Paige. She burst into tears, her voice trembling as she looked at Gary. “You said you haven’t touched her in three years! You promised you were waiting for me! You liar!” She turned and bolted down the hall. Gary didn’t even look at me. He shoved me aside to chase after her. I tripped, my ankle twisting sharply as I hit the floor. As the pain flared, all I could think about was the year after the miscarriage. He had flown across the country to find the best holistic doctors to “restore” my health. He would hold the cup of medicine to my lips and whisper, “The doctor says your body is too fragile. We have to wait three years before we try again. No intimacy, honey. I just want you to heal.” If he hadn’t come home drunk after his department’s gala last month and forced himself on me, I might never have known. His “devotion” was just a tactic to keep his mistress happy. My heart was dead wood. I pulled myself up and limped away. … Gary called me a week later. His voice was low, raspy with exhaustion. “Paige can’t handle it. she’s trying to break up with me. She’s threatening to turn down the Zurich offer just to spite me.” 4. I sat in a coffee shop, my knuckles white as I gripped the phone. “And?” Silence. Then, “Get an abortion. I promise, we can have another child later. When the timing is right.” I fought back a shudder. “You know what the doctor said, Gary. If I lose another one, I might never—” “Paige’s future is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I won’t let anyone stand in her way.” He hung up. I felt the blood drain from my face. A second later, Jordan arrived and dropped a folder on the table like a lead weight. “Gary took out a private loan three months ago. He used your parents’ bistro as collateral to fund Paige’s offshore account.” The world went black for a moment. He knew that bistro was my parents’ life’s work. They’d run it for thirty years. I reached for my phone to scream at him, but my mother’s name flashed on the screen. She was hysterical. “Clara? There are men here… debt collectors. They say Gary put a lien on the restaurant? What’s happening? Oh god—Arthur! Arthur, look at me! Clara, your father’s having a heart attack—” … “We got him here in time. He’s stable for now.” The surgeon’s words allowed me to breathe, but only for a second. Gary walked down the hospital corridor, his white coat billowing. He looked at my tear-streaked face with a chilling, mocking indifference. “If you had just cooperated earlier, your father wouldn’t be in surgery.” I stared at him, horrified. “You did this on purpose. You knew his heart was weak—” “You refused to listen.” Gary shrugged. Because his mistress was throwing a tantrum, he was willing to let my father die. “You animal!” I slapped him across the face, a visceral, ringing blow. “When you were fourteen and your relatives nearly beat you to death for ‘stealing’ money you didn’t take, my father took the blows for you! He broke his arm protecting you!” “When you were fifteen and needed a transfusion, we all lined up! My father gave so much he couldn’t stand up for two days!” “When you were seventeen—” “Enough!” Gary roared, his eyes flashing with pure loathing. “Don’t act like your family is so noble. You only took me in because you knew I’d be someone one day. It was an investment!” The rage left me as quickly as it had come. It was replaced by a hollow, final disappointment. I wiped my eyes. “Fine. I’ll do it. The baby is gone.” Gary looked surprised by my sudden compliance. He hesitated. “I can give you a few days to prepare mentally. I know you’re attached—” “No need.” I held up my phone, my voice empty. “I’ve already checked in. The procedure is in thirty minutes.” I expected him to be pleased. Instead, his face went livid. “You’re that eager to kill my child?” I didn’t answer. I followed the nurse into the surgical wing. Two hours later, I was back in a recovery room. Gary appeared, now dressed in a suit. Seeing my pale face, a rare flicker of guilt crossed his eyes. “…Did it hurt?” he asked softly. I turned my head away, silent. His phone rang. It was Paige. Her voice was a high-pitched whine. “Gary, hurry up! We’re going to be late for the dinner with Professor Abernathy! It’s not like it’s her first miscarriage, why are you hovering—” For the first time, Gary hung up on her without a word. “She’s just a girl, Clara. Don’t take it to heart,” he said, the old gaslighting habit returning. “I’m not leaving you alone because I want to. I spent months convincing Professor Abernathy to write her recommendation for Zurich. Without it, she’s stuck.” He paused, looking at me as if I owed him something. “Try to understand. She’s given me three years of her life without a title. I owe her. Your family did a lot for me, but I’m not ungrateful. Once she’s settled in Germany, we’ll have a fresh start. We’ll have another baby.” I looked at him and smiled. It was the most honest smile I’d given him in years. “Okay.” He left, satisfied. The moment he was gone, Jordan walked in. She nodded to me. “Everything is ready. The evidence of the affair, the financial fraud, the professional misconduct reports.” I reached into the drawer of the nightstand and handed her a small, heavy wooden box. “Six months ago, you handled the divorce for Professor Abernathy’s daughter. You said he hates cheaters more than anything.” I looked at the door Gary had just walked through. “This is the gift I prepared for Gary’s dinner. Make sure the Professor gets it.”

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It was at the dinner table that I initiated a conversation with Daniel for the very last time. It was an entirely unremarkable evening. I simply wanted to ask if we could take our daughter to the park that weekend. The words had barely left my mouth when, without so much as lifting his eyes, he tapped his fork lightly against the edge of his plate. A sharp, dismissive clink. I opened my mouth, fully prepared to repeat the question, when six-year-old Mia suddenly set her own fork down. She looked up at me, her small face painfully solemn, like a miniature adult brokering a peace treaty. “Mommy, don’t call Daddy anymore.” And then, the quiet follow-up: “He doesn’t want to talk to you.” My hand froze suspended in mid-air. It felt as though a cold, rusted blade had just been driven straight through my ribs. Daniel’s fork paused for a fraction of a second, but then he went right back to pushing his food around his plate, his head bowed, pretending he hadn’t heard a thing. I stared into my daughter’s large, clear eyes, and the realization hit me with terrifying clarity. This exhausting, desperate chase I’d been running for ten years… it was nothing but a one-woman play. She was only six years old. Six. And she had already learned how to read the emotional dead space in the room on her father’s behalf. I stood up, picked up Mia’s plate, and kept my voice soft. “Come on, baby. Let’s go eat in the living room.” 01 After Mia finished her dinner, I gave her a bath, read her two bedtime stories, and sat in the dim light until her breathing grew heavy and even. When I finally walked into the master bedroom, Daniel was propped up against the headboard, scrolling through his phone. The harsh blue light from the screen washed over his face. He didn’t even blink at the sound of the door. The old me—the me from yesterday—would have sat on the edge of the mattress, tentatively touching the duvet. I would have said, Daniel, can we talk? He would have replied, About what. Then I would have poured out a frantic, desperate monologue, to which he would offer a flat Mm, roll over, and go to sleep. And then, I would have spent the next two hours staring at his broad back, letting my tears soak quietly into the pillowcase. But tonight, I didn’t sit on the bed. I grabbed a spare blanket from the closet and walked down the hall to the home office. I’d bought the daybed for the office last year, rationalizing that if we ever had a massive blowout, one of us could sleep in here to cool off. But I quickly learned that Daniel and I couldn’t have blowouts. Fighting requires two people. He never stepped into the ring. I lay on the narrow mattress, staring up at the shadowed ceiling. My phone lit up on the nightstand. A text from my mom: Did my girls have a good day? I typed out: It’s fine. Backspace. Delete. I typed: Doing great, Mom. Send. For the last ten years, my response to my mother had always been, Doing great. My texts to Daniel, however, were always paragraphs. Massive blocks of blue text. He wouldn’t reply. So I would send another paragraph. Still nothing. Then I’d call him. When it went straight to voicemail, I’d wait by the front door until he got home from work, ambushing him the second the lock clicked. My friends told me I was being too needy. He told me I was suffocating him. And honestly? I’d started to think I was clinically insane. Chasing a ghost for a decade—God, the sheer humiliation of it. But tonight, Mia’s little voice had struck something deep inside me, like a mallet hitting a brass bell. Gong. Something shattered. It wasn’t my heart. My heart had broken years ago. It was the thick, stubborn shell of my own delusion. It cracked wide open. I slept incredibly well that night. No dreams. No silent sobbing. No waking up at 3:00 AM to check if he’d finally texted back. The next morning, when my alarm went off, I actually lay there stunned for a full second. I hadn’t realized it was possible to fall asleep without waiting for a reply. It was Wednesday. Normally, every single weekday morning, I would wake up early to make Daniel a hot breakfast and arrange it perfectly on the kitchen island. He never said thank you. Occasionally he ate it, but usually, he just grabbed a tumbler of black coffee and walked out the door. Today, I only made oatmeal for Mia. Then I crouched down to braid her hair. When Daniel walked into the kitchen, his eyes flicked toward the island. There was only Mia’s little bunny bowl and her pink plastic spoon. He didn’t say a word. He just opened the fridge, grabbed a protein shake, picked up his briefcase, and left. The sound of the front door clicking shut was identical to the sound it had made every day for the last two thousand days. But for the first time, I didn’t chase him down the hallway shouting, Drive safe! Mia tilted her head back to look at me. “Mommy, you didn’t say bye to Daddy today.” I smiled, gently pinching her cheek. “Did you say bye to Daddy, sweetie?” She shook her head. “Daddy walks too fast.” Yeah. He did. He always walked so fast. And I had spent ten years running, and I had never once managed to catch up. 02 Daniel and I met in college. He wasn’t drop-dead gorgeous, but he was clean-cut, quiet, and possessed a focused intensity when he ran track that I found incredibly magnetic. Every girl in the liberal arts department knew that Gemma was desperately chasing Daniel. My methods were embarrassingly clumsy. I brought him coffee every morning. When he said he didn’t need it, I lied and said it was a buy-one-get-one-free deal. When his study group ran late, I waited outside the library in the freezing wind, holding his favorite Americano. He’d tell me, Stop waiting for me, it’s too cold out. I’d smile, shivering. It’s fine, I wasn’t doing anything anyway. During the winter of our senior year, he finally agreed to go out with me. I sat on the floor of my crappy off-campus apartment and cried for an hour. Happy tears. It was only later, much later, that I slowly realized he hadn’t said yes because I’d won his heart. He’d said yes because it was easy, and there wasn’t anyone better around. His mother said it once. I heard it with my own ears. “Daniel has always been like this. He doesn’t take initiative. You chased him so relentlessly, so he just went along with it.” She said it so casually, like she was commenting on the weather. I was standing just outside the kitchen, holding a platter of sliced fruit, my knuckles turning white as my grip tightened on the ceramic edge. The first year of our marriage was okay. He was quiet, but he’d at least walk with me through the neighborhood on weekends. If I wanted to see a movie, he’d complain about the parking, but he’d still go. The tipping point was when Mia was born. While I was drowning in postpartum depression, navigating newborn care utterly alone, he was suddenly buried in overtime, business trips, and client dinners. There was always a pristine excuse for him not to be home. Once, pushed to the brink of a breakdown during a 3:00 AM feeding, I called him. He sighed into the receiver and said, “Doesn’t Mia have you?” I begged him to come home early just once. He snapped, “Could you not do this right now? I’m exhausted too.” This. Needing him was doing this. Wanting to talk to him was doing this. Hoping for a text back was doing this. Over time, I developed a mental translation feature. When he said, “Stop being dramatic,” my brain translated it to: Your emotions are an inconvenience. When he said, “What is there to talk about?” it translated to: Your feelings don’t matter. When he said, “Look at how other guys’ wives behave,” it meant: You are not enough. When Mia was three, I finally broke down crying in the middle of the living room. Daniel walked out of the bedroom, stopped, and looked at me. “What’s wrong now?” I looked up at him through blurred vision. “Can you just… can you just hold me?” He let out a long, heavy exhale, turned around, and walked back into the bedroom. Click. The door shut. That was the first time I realized that the space between us wasn’t just a wooden door. It was a barren, uncrossable wasteland. But I didn’t stop. I kept chasing. Kept texting. Kept waiting. I honestly believed that if I just tried a little harder, sacrificed a little more, he would eventually turn around and look at me. Ten years. I chased him for an entire decade. I chased him until I no longer recognized the woman looking back at me in the mirror. In college, I was top of my class in the graphic design program. My senior portfolio won awards. My professor handed me a guaranteed job offer at a top-tier creative agency in Chicago. I didn’t take it. Because Daniel got a corporate job in this city. I told myself that staying together was the most important thing. Then Mia came along, and I quit my entry-level design job to be a stay-at-home mom. Daniel had shrugged and said, “It makes sense for you to stay home. Saves us money on daycare.” That Chicago agency went on to become an industry powerhouse. Every now and then, I’d see their award-winning campaigns pop up on my LinkedIn feed. I would stare at the screen for a long, long time. Then I’d lock my phone and go back to washing baby bottles. 03 The change happened in microscopic increments. During the first week of not chasing Daniel, my skin felt itchy. Muscle memory is a terrifying thing. My hand would automatically reach for my phone to open iMessage, desperate to see if he’d texted back. And then I’d remember—I hadn’t sent him anything. If you don’t send anything, there is nothing to wait for. It was a deeply disorienting sensation. Like a sprinter who had been running full-tilt for ten years suddenly slamming on the brakes; the momentum makes you feel like you’re still lunging forward, even though your feet have stopped moving. On day three, I made a decision. On my way home from grocery shopping, I didn’t take the usual route. I turned down a street I hadn’t driven down in years. At the end of the block sat a boutique fitness studio, its warm, orange lighting spilling out onto the pavement. I stood outside the glass doors for thirty seconds. Then I pushed them open. The girl at the front desk, all Lululemon and bright smiles, asked if I wanted a trial class. “I’ll take the annual membership.” Twelve hundred dollars. My hand didn’t even tremble as I tapped my credit card. It was the first time in ten years I had spent a significant amount of money entirely on myself. And more importantly, I didn’t text Daniel to say, Hey, I joined a gym. In the past, any purchase over fifty bucks required a full report. And his reaction was always the exact same: Mm. Whatever makes you happy. Whatever makes you happy. Translation: I literally do not care. So, I stopped reporting. On day five, I dug a dusty gray canvas tote out from the back of my closet. Inside were my old college sketchbooks, design drafts, and that ancient offer letter from the Chicago agency. The offer was long dead, but the sketches were still there. When I flipped open the first page, the smell of graphite and aged paper hit my nose, sharp and familiar. Mia poked her head over my arm. “Did you draw that, Mommy? It’s so pretty!” “I did. Mommy used to draw all the time.” “Used to? You don’t know how anymore?” I looked down at her earnest, upturned face. “I still know how. It’s just been a long time.” That night, after Mia was asleep, I wiped down the dining table, laid out fresh paper, and started sketching a logo. I was rusty. The lines lacked their old confident snap. But as I laid down the final stroke, I felt something inside my chest loosen. Like a rusted pipe that had been blocked for years finally letting a single drop of water through. During those first two weeks, Daniel didn’t notice a damn thing. I stopped texting. He didn’t ask, Why haven’t you texted me? I stopped calling. He didn’t ask, Why haven’t you called? I stopped waiting by the door. He walked in, took off his shoes, ate dinner, scrolled on his phone, and went to bed. Business as usual. It was staggering to realize just how small my footprint in his life actually was. I had essentially evaporated, and he hadn’t even blinked. A year ago, that realization would have destroyed me. Now? I just thought—Good. If my surrender had absolutely zero impact on his daily life, then what was the point of the last ten years? There was no point. It was entirely meaningless. Accepting that truth hurt worse than any time he’d ever hung up the phone on me. But once the agonizing pain washed over me, what was left in its wake was a strange, terrifying lightness. My friend Paige asked me out for dinner. She was the only person from my college days I still kept in touch with. We sat down at a bustling Italian place, and before we even looked at the menus, she leaned across the table. “You look different. Lighter.” “Do I?” “Yeah. Usually, the very first sentence out of your mouth is, ‘He’s ignoring me again.’ You haven’t mentioned him once.” I offered a small smile. “I stopped chasing him.” Paige froze, her hand hovering over the bread basket. “Say that again?” “I’m done. I’m not chasing Daniel anymore.” She slowly set the bread down and stared at me in absolute silence for five full seconds. Then, right there in the middle of the crowded restaurant, Paige started clapping. She clapped loudly, three times, making the table next to us turn and stare. “Gemma, that is the most lucid thing I have heard you say in a decade.” I felt my cheeks flush, and a sudden, sharp sting hit the back of my eyes. But I forced the tears down. My crying quota for this man had been utterly depleted. 04 In the third week, my mother-in-law arrived. Daniel’s mother visited two or three times a year, usually staying for a week. She wasn’t a monster, but she possessed a masterful ability to deliver devastatingly critical remarks wrapped in the most casual, breezy tones. On her first night, she stood in the center of the living room, her eyes doing a slow sweep. “Gemma, honey, have you been letting the housework slip? You used to keep this place looking like a magazine spread.” It was true. Before every single one of her visits, I would spend three days doing a manic deep-clean. I’d polish the kitchen counters until they gleamed, color-coordinate the hand towels, and painstakingly sort all of Mia’s toys into labeled bins. This time, I hadn’t touched a thing. It wasn’t a calculated rebellion. I had simply gone to the gym after picking up Mia, and then I’d spent the evening sketching. There simply wasn’t time. “I’ve been busy lately,” I said evenly. My mother-in-law didn’t respond to me. Instead, I saw her shoot a loaded look at Daniel. I knew that look intimately. Translation: Look at your wife. She’s completely letting herself go. Surprisingly, Daniel spoke up. “Mom, leave it alone. The house is fine.” She offered a tight smile. “I didn’t say anything.” The next afternoon, while Daniel was out picking up takeout, she cornered me in the kitchen. “Gemma, is there some sort of friction between you and Daniel lately?” “No.” “Then why aren’t you speaking to him? You used to follow him around the house just to chat.” I kept my rhythm steady, chopping bell peppers. “Mom, you were the one who told me I was too clingy. You said men need their space.” Her forced smile fractured for a second. “I meant that for your own good. In a marriage, it’s not a good look for a woman to be so desperate. You need to have some dignity.” I scooped the diced peppers into a bowl. “Well, look at me now. I’m practically radiating dignity.” She stared at me, her eyes narrowing. “Why are you being so passive-aggressive?” “I’m really not, Mom.” I rinsed the knife under the tap. “I’m just learning to give him space.” Her jaw tightened, but she didn’t push it further. As I turned my back to dry the knife, I heard her mutter under her breath. “You’re becoming incredibly difficult.” Years ago, hearing that word would have sent me into a panic spiral. I would have spent the rest of the week agonizing over what I’d done wrong, bending over backward to appease her. Today, it just made me want to laugh. Difficult. What she really meant was: I can’t control you anymore. She only stayed for five days. Before she left, she pulled Daniel out onto the patio and spoke to him in hushed, urgent tones for fifteen minutes. I was on the living room rug, coloring with Mia. I couldn’t hear the words, but when Daniel walked back inside, his face was unreadable. Heavy. He stood next to where I was sitting on the floor. He hovered there, like he wanted to say something. I didn’t look up. He stood there for fifteen seconds, then walked away. But that night, he actually approached me. “Are you… mad at me lately?” I was sitting at the desk in the study, sketching. I didn’t stop my pen. “No.” “Then why aren’t you talking to me?” My pen paused. What a fascinating question. I had chased him for ten years, drowning him in words, and he had treated me like a mosquito buzzing in his ear. Now that I’d been quiet for three weeks, he was the one seeking me out. “It’s not that I’m giving you the silent treatment,” I said, putting the pen back to the paper. “I just realized I don’t really have anything left to say.” He went entirely rigid. It was a line he knew very well. Over the last decade, he had fed those exact words to me no less than a hundred times. I think the realization hit him, because the color drained from his face. But he didn’t apologize. He didn’t push. He just turned around and walked out. It was the exact same exit he had made a thousand times before. Except this time, I wasn’t the one left standing in the wreckage. 05 A full month passed. Daniel started exhibiting bizarre little behaviors. Things I had never seen before. Like putting his dirty dish in the sink after dinner. For ten years, he’d left it on the table for me to clear, walking away the second he finished his last bite. Like murmuring, “I’m heading out,” before he left for work. He had never announced his departures before. Like staying home on Saturday instead of going to play golf with his buddies. He just sat on the living room sofa, occasionally casting glances toward the closed door of the study. I was in the study, working. I had recently picked up a few freelance design gigs online. A local artisan bakery had hired me to rebrand their logo. The pay was terrible. Eight hundred dollars. But it was the very first dollar I had earned in six years. When the Venmo notification popped up on my phone, I sat at the desk and stared at the green numbers for a long, long time. Eight hundred dollars. It barely covered a month of Mia’s after-school care. But it was mine. It was entirely, indisputably mine. I didn’t have to report it to anyone, and I didn’t have to explain how I’d earned it. I locked my screen and started on the next draft. That Saturday afternoon, Daniel finally pushed open the door to the study. He pulled up a chair and sat next to me, watching the screen. It was the first time in six years he had voluntarily entered this room while I was in it. “What are you working on?” “A logo design.” “For who?” “A client.” “What kind of client?” I kept my hand steady on the mouse. “A bakery.” Silence stretched between us. Thick and awkward. “When did you start taking on freelance work?” “Last month.” More silence. I could practically feel the words backing up in his throat. He wanted to say something, but he had no idea how to cross the bridge. In the old days, I would have thrown him a lifeline. I would have recognized his discomfort and rushed to fix it. Is something wrong? It’s okay, you can tell me. I wasn’t throwing lifelines anymore. Let him drown in the silence. Eventually, he stood up. “Right. Okay.” He walked out. When the door clicked shut, I heard the television turn on in the living room. The volume was barely a whisper. Usually, when he watched sports, the TV was loud enough to shake the floorboards. Today, he had it turned down to an absolute murmur. Like he was terrified of disturbing someone. Mia had been changing too. She used to tip-toe around the house, speaking in hushed tones. She knew Mommy was always on the verge of tears, and Daddy was always irritated. She was six, but she navigated the house with the hyper-vigilance of a weary, forty-something crisis negotiator. Reading moods, smoothing things over. That was my greatest sin. That was the thing I felt most guilty for. But now that I wasn’t obsessing over Daniel, my emotional baseline had flatlined into a calm, steady hum. And Mia’s laughter was returning. Last week, she took a crayon and drew a jagged purple bunny right on the corner of one of my printed sketches. “Mommy, I’m helping you draw!” “It’s beautiful, baby. The best part of the page.” She erupted into a fit of giggles, bright and clear as a wind chime. I watched her profile as she colored. She had never felt safe enough to laugh that loudly in this house. When the weight of that realization crashed down on me, my throat burned. But I didn’t cry. Not because I was trying to be strong, but because I refused to let her see her mother crying over this house anymore. She had seen enough tears to last a lifetime. It stopped today.

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A sudden, jarring fracture in reality propelled me five years into the future. In my memory, Dwight and I were just starting to plan our wedding. I remember the weight of the silk, the way the lace scratched my collarbone as I stepped out of the fitting room, my heart hammering against my ribs. I expected to see that look—the one where his breath hitches, where he looks at me like I’m the only light in a dark room. Instead, he just smiled. It was a practiced, hollow thing. He told me I looked beautiful in the gown, but his next words gutted me: he wouldn’t be the one standing at the end of the aisle. I stood there, paralyzed, my mind spinning. I didn’t understand. Then he told me he had already signed the papers. He was legally married to someone else. I had spent three years chasing him—the untouchable “Ice King” of our university. He was the brilliant, distant architect of his own world, and I had slowly, painfully carved a place for myself in it. Behind that cold exterior, he had been a man who would pull me into a frantic kiss in the rain, who would swallow his pride and beg hospital administrators for help when my mother got sick. Or at least, he used to be. … The news hit me like a physical blow. I felt the blood drain from my face, leaving me cold in the middle of the boutique. Dwight leaned down, his fingers steady as he adjusted the train of my dress. He spoke about his infidelity with the same clinical detachment he used for business contracts. “I met a girl. She’s young, impulsive—one of those girls who loves too hard and threatens to break her own heart if she doesn’t get her way.” He let out a soft, dry chuckle. “She made it clear she wouldn’t survive if I didn’t marry her.” He looked up at me, his eyes searching mine. “I couldn’t just let her destroy herself. You’re not that cruel, are you? You’d understand.” My voice shook, barely a whisper. “Dwight, if this is a joke, it’s not funny. It’s not April Fools’. Stop it.” His smile faded, replaced by a terrifyingly soft expression. He leaned in and kissed my forehead. “Joanna, I’m serious.” I stared at him. The face was the same—the sharp jaw, the eyes that haunted my dreams—but the soul behind them felt like a stranger’s. I felt a chill settle into my bones. He stroked my cheek, his voice a soothing hum. “She has the certificate, the legal status. But my heart? That belongs to you. You’re still the woman I love. You’re the only ‘Mrs. Sterling’ that matters in this house.” “Except for the wedding,” I whispered, the words tasting like ash. “And the legal right to your name.” He shrugged. “I can give you everything else. Luxury, devotion, a life most people dream of. Does a piece of paper really change what we have?” Everything I had spent years building—the future I had survived for—felt like a grotesque parody. Last night—or what felt like last night to me—he had been holding me, whispering that he would make something of himself, that he would give me the world. I opened my eyes to a world where he was indeed the powerful CEO he promised to be. He just wasn’t mine anymore. I took a ragged breath, the corset of the dress feeling like it was crushing my lungs. “If you’re married to her, then we’re done. I’m leaving.” Dwight’s face darkened instantly. The mask of the doting lover slipped. “Joanna, don’t be childish. You’re not a girl anymore; don’t act like one. Why pick a fight over a child who means nothing?” He stepped closer, his shadow looming over me. “I’ve spent five years making sure you never had to lift a finger. You’re a hothouse flower now. Where would you go? Who would take care of you?” A needle of sharp, hot pain pierced my chest. I couldn’t wrap my head around it. How did the boy who would have moved mountains for me turn into this—a man who saw me as a pet? I forced a laugh, tilting my chin up with the last shred of my dignity. “I don’t need a keeper, Dwight. I’ll survive just fine on my own.” He stared at me for a moment, as if seeing a ghost. Then he reached out and pinched my cheek, a patronizing gesture. “Stop the drama. When I get bored of her—and I will—I’ll divorce her and marry you properly. Okay?” I stepped back, breaking his touch. “I said, it’s over.” His eyes turned cold. “Fine. It’s over. But tell me—how are you going to cover your mother’s medical bills? It’s sixty thousand a month for her care. Do you have that kind of cash lying around?” I froze. He saw the flicker of panic in my eyes and smiled, satisfied. He patted my hair. “Go back to the house, Joanna. You’re my partner, not some mistress you need to compete with. Take a cab to the hospital after you change. Go see her. She’s been asking for you.” He checked his watch, dismissive. “I have to go. Talia is stubborn; she won’t eat dinner unless I’m there to coax her.” I watched him walk away, his silhouette sharp and confident against the afternoon sun. I stood there, a bride in a dress that no longer meant anything, until the shop assistant’s awkward cough snapped me back to reality. I stripped off the lace and silk and ran for the hospital. Five years ago, my mother needed a specialist—a surgeon whose waitlist was miles long. Back then, Dwight was just a student with a brilliant mind and zero clout. He had slept in the hospital lobby for a week, pestering every resident and intern until he finally got her chart into the right hands. He saved her life. Now, that life was a bargaining chip. When I entered her room, the woman in the bed looked like a shadow of herself. She was gaunt, her skin like parchment. When she saw me, her clouded eyes brightened. She reached out with a trembling hand. “Mom,” I whispered, pressing her palm to my face. “I’m here.” She smiled weakly. “My good girl. Where’s Dwight? You mentioned the wedding… did the dress fit?” The tears started then, hot and uncontrollable. I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t tell her that her hero was a monster. “It’s beautiful, Mom. He loved it. He says I look like an angel.” She nodded, her eyes drifting shut. “Your father is waiting for me, Joanna. I’m not afraid to go. I just didn’t want to leave you alone. But seeing you two… I can rest now.” I couldn’t breathe. I made a frantic excuse and stumbled out of the room, my heart a lead weight in my chest. I went back to the house—our house—only to be met with the sound of laughter and intimacy echoing through the hall. “Do you like it when I feed you, baby?” “I love it. I want you to do everything for me.” The voice was high, flirtatious. My stomach did a slow, sickening roll. I leaned against the wall, dry-heaving, the bile rising in my throat. I wanted to scream, to tear the door off its hinges, but then I thought of my mother—fragile as a dried leaf in that hospital bed. I stayed frozen. When the silence finally fell, I keyed in the code. The air in the living room was heavy, smelling of expensive perfume and sex. I felt like I was walking into a crime scene. A girl—Talia—yelped, clutching a silk throw over her bare shoulders as she huddled into Dwight’s side on the sofa. Dwight didn’t even look guilty. He just sighed, pulling a blanket over both of them. “You should have called before coming back from the hospital. I would have picked you up.” I didn’t speak. If I opened my mouth, I was going to lose it. Talia peeked out from the blanket, her eyes wide and faux-innocent. “Dwight? You said this was our home. Why is she still here? Is she going to… watch us?” She emphasized the word “watch” with a jagged edge of malice. Dwight didn’t answer her immediately. She kicked him playfully under the blanket. “I don’t like it! Make her leave!” I looked around the room. Every piece of furniture, every painting, was exactly as I had described it to him years ago on the night of our graduation. This was supposed to be our sanctuary. “Fine,” Dwight said, his voice flat. He looked at me as if I were a piece of furniture that no longer fit the decor. “Joanna, move out. The lake house is bigger anyway. You’ll like the garden.” I didn’t fight. I didn’t beg. “Fine. I’ll go.” Maybe it was the lack of resistance, but Dwight looked surprised. He stood up, pulling on his pants, and walked over to me. “You always complained about not having enough room for your plants. The lake house has a greenhouse. I’ll come by tonight.” I looked at the scratches on his chest, the marks of another woman’s nails. I stepped back. “Whatever she wants. I don’t care.” He smiled, reaching out to ruffle my hair. “Good girl.” At seven that night, my phone buzzed. “Talia has a fever,” Dwight said, his voice clipped. “I’m staying at the clinic with her. Come to the hospital; I’ll walk you to your mom’s room.” I hesitated, but I thought of the look on my mother’s face earlier. I went. But when I got to the ward, Dwight wasn’t there. Only Talia was, standing by my mother’s bed. Her hand was hovering over the oxygen intake. My heart nearly stopped. I lunged forward, grabbing her wrist and twisting it away. Before I could think, my hand flew out and cracked across her face. Talia’s “innocent girl” mask shattered. Her face twisted into something ugly, something predatory. “You pathetic old bitch,” she hissed, clutching her red cheek. “You think you can just hang onto my husband? You’re a parasite. Sixty thousand a month to keep a corpse warm? That’s my money. That’s marital property.” She leaned in, her voice a poisonous whisper. “Stay in this room every second if you want. But the moment you leave, I’m ending this.” I was shaking with a rage so pure it felt like fire. I raised my hand again, but she suddenly collapsed toward the door, sobbing. “Dwight! She hit me! She just attacked me!” Dwight was there in an instant, catching her. His eyes, when they landed on me, were ice. “Apologize to her. Now.” I laughed, a jagged, broken sound. “She tried to kill my mother. I should have done more than slap her. If she touches that equipment again, I’ll kill her myself.” Talia’s tears flowed harder. “I didn’t! I was just curious who was in here… I didn’t touch anything!” Dwight’s jaw tightened. “Joanna. Apologize.” “I have nothing to apologize for. Check the cameras! If I’m lying, may God strike me down right here!” Talia tugged at his shirt. “Dwight, I swear on my life I didn’t do anything. My face hurts so much…” “I believe you,” he said softly to her. “Let’s get you to a doctor. I promise you, she’ll be the one begging for forgiveness soon.” He threw a final, chilling look over his shoulder. “I’ll be in the next room, Joanna. I’m waiting.” They left. “Joanna?” a weak voice called from the bed. I turned. My mother was awake, her eyes wide with a terrifying clarity. “Did that girl… did she call him her husband?” I tried to swallow the lump in my throat. I tried to smile. “No, Mom. She’s just a… a nurse he hired. She’s being let go. Don’t worry about it.” “I’m sick, Joanna. I’m not blind.” She looked at me with heartbreaking pity. “It’s over, isn’t it? He’s with someone else.” I couldn’t speak. The silence filled the room like water in a sinking ship. Suddenly, three nurses burst in. “Room three. Payments have been halted, and the discharge papers were signed by the primary guarantor. We need the equipment for an incoming patient. Please clear the room immediately.” The world tilted. I knew that look he gave me. This was the “consequence.” He was using my mother’s literal breath to break me. My mother seemed to understand. She reached out, squeezing my hand one last time. “It’s okay, Joanna. I’m ready. Don’t let him do this to you.” “No! I won’t let you die!” I ran to the billing department, my lungs burning. I pulled out every card I had. Declined. Declined. Frozen. In a panic, I ran to Talia’s room. I fell to my knees. I let my forehead hit the cold linoleum. “I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have hit you! Please, just tell him to turn the machines back on!” I screamed, the words blurring together. “Dwight, I apologized! Don’t kill her! Please!” Dwight sat there, calmly feeding Talia a spoonful of soup. He looked at her. “Do you forgive her? Or should she stay there a while longer?” I sobbed, my head throbbing, blood trickling from where I’d hit the floor. Talia just watched me, a small, cruel smile playing on her lips. Just as I felt the darkness closing in, a commotion broke out in the hall. “What a waste… should we take her to the morgue or call the funeral home directly?” “Her daughter was just at the desk… she was too late.” The thread snapped. I scrambled to my feet, my legs like jelly. A young nurse caught me as I stumbled out of the room. “Where were you?” she asked, her voice soft with pity. “You missed her. She left this for you.” She handed me a crumpled scrap of paper. My mother’s shaky handwriting: Joanna, I didn’t want to be your burden anymore. Live your life. The orderlies pushed the gurney out. The white sheet was pulled over a face I had loved my entire life. The world went black. When I opened my eyes again, I was standing in the middle of the University Quad. It was spring. The air smelled of cut grass and cheap coffee. Dwight—twenty-one-year-old Dwight—was standing in front of me, looking younger, softer, his eyes full of a light that hadn’t yet been extinguished by greed. “Joanna,” he said, his voice bright. “I… I accept. I want to be with you too.” I looked at the bouquet of roses in my hand. I looked at the man who would eventually murder my mother for the sake of his ego. I threw the flowers directly into his face. “Get lost, Dwight. Don’t ever speak to me again. You make me sick.”

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