Jack’s childhood friend turned into a social media influencer while I was away. She snuck into my room when I wasn’t home, guessed my computer password, and copied all my paid novels onto her phone. Then she posted them online for free. Overnight, she gained tens of thousands of followers. The next day, when I confronted her, she smirked and said, “What’s wrong, old lady? Jealous that I’m making money now?” Jack walked in just as Lily and I were in the middle of a heated argument. Well, to be more accurate, Lily was the one doing all the yelling. I realized she was like a madwoman from an asylum – completely impossible to reason with. “If you can write stories as a side gig, why can’t I promote them?” she sneered. “What’s wrong, old lady? Jealous that I’m making money now?” My initial anger at her accusations gradually turned to stunned silence as I listened to her increasingly unhinged ranting. Lily used to be Jack’s neighbor and in his words, was just an innocent, lively young girl. After graduating, she moved to our city for work. Being new and unfamiliar with the place, she had come to stay with him. My newly purchased apartment had two bedrooms. Jack suggested letting Lily stay temporarily until her internship ended in a few months. “Lena, it’ll be three months max. Just think of it as doing me a favor,” he pleaded. At first, I refused. After all, who wants to live with a stranger? But then I reconsidered. When I first moved here, I had no one and went through many hardships. If I could help someone else out, why not? It was only for three months after all. I didn’t even charge her rent. Little did I know I was inviting a wolf into my home. One time Lily’s laptop broke down when she urgently needed to revise a proposal. She was in tears, so I softened and lent her my computer. Afterwards, I forgot to change the password. Who knew that would plant the seeds of disaster? Seeing Jack arrive, Lily immediately transformed into a sweet, demure girl – a complete 180 from her nasty attitude just moments ago. She lowered her slightly damp lashes, sniffled, and said softly, “Jack, there are so many novel promotion accounts online. Why is Lena picking on me specifically? Doesn’t she want people to promote her work?” Jack was silent for a moment, his brow furrowed. “Normally, social media influencers don’t post an author’s entire work. That’s quite…” He paused, searching for the right word. “…disrespectful.” Hah. I laughed bitterly. So unethical behavior is just “disrespectful” now? Hearing this, Lily hung her head and mumbled, “Okay, I was wrong then.” She took a deep breath and when she looked up again, she was back to her innocent, carefree persona. With a bright smile, she chirped, “Let’s go get dinner! My treat, as an apology to Lena.” Apology? Who does she think she’s fooling? I sat on the couch and smiled at her. “Lily, first you need to delete all the videos. Then return the money you earned from the views to me. Finally, post a public apology statement.” “That would be a real apology.” Lily stared at me in disbelief, her voice suddenly rising. “Lena, you’re going too far!” Going too far? How ridiculous. I pulled up the videos from my phone gallery and handed it to her expressionlessly. Instantly, Lily’s face froze. Jack, not knowing what was happening, curiously leaned over to look. Soon his brows furrowed, a deeply disappointed expression on his face as he glanced at Lily, seemingly at a loss for words. The videos showed all of Lily’s misdeeds in my room when I was away. Not only did she steal my manuscripts, she also wore my clothes, used my skincare products, spat on my bedsheets and pillowcases, and even took my jewelry. At first when I noticed things amiss, I had suspected Lily but had no proof. Who knew that just three days after installing hidden cameras, I’d capture so much incriminating footage? Lily’s face turned beet red with shame. She looked at Jack with teary eyes, shaking her head. “I… I didn’t…” But she couldn’t come up with any excuses. In a fit of rage, she deleted the video and tossed the phone onto the couch, glaring at me defiantly. I savored Lily’s smug expression with amusement, speaking slowly. “No worries, I have plenty of backup copies. Lily, if you don’t meet my demands, I’ll have no choice but to hand this over to the police. After all, there’s clear evidence of theft.” I paused, then added, “That Cartier necklace wasn’t worth much, but is it really worth getting a criminal record over?” Lily was utterly humiliated and furious. Biting her lip, she had no choice but to delete the videos, return the money she’d earned, and post an apology statement under my increasingly impatient gaze. As for the Cartier necklace, Lily claimed she had already sold it on eBay for $50. …Well, no matter. She can just compensate me for the full price then.
When Lily moved out, she sneered that I was obsessed with money. I lazily raised an eyebrow, replying nonchalantly, “Still better than being brainless like you.” She glared at me fiercely, at a loss for words. Not long after, Lily posted on Instagram. The photo showed her on a balcony at dusk, gazing into the distance. Her delicate profile was bathed in the fading light, hair gently blowing in the breeze. It had a tranquil, poetic quality. The caption read: “Grateful for the shelter. Looking forward to what’s ahead.” I knew that balcony all too well – it was at Jack’s place. An indescribable chill ran through me. It was nauseating. If that’s how it was going to be, why bother dumping this idiot on me in the first place? Utterly ridiculous! I coldly texted Jack asking what the hell was going on. Moments later, Jack called. He sounded flustered. “Lena, Lily had to move out so suddenly and couldn’t find a place. I couldn’t just let her end up on the streets.” It sounded like he was blaming me for kicking her out. I asked, “Are there no hotels?” Jack sighed softly. “It’s not safe for a young woman to stay at a hotel alone. Lena, Lily’s young and naive. She knows she was wrong. Just let it go, okay?” I was speechless. One loved stealing, the other loved twisting words. These two really did have a future together. “Jack, Lily may be five years younger than me, but even five years ago I would never have done what she did. And I certainly wouldn’t be living with someone else’s boyfriend.” I paused, then said, “Let’s break up.” There was silence on the other end. I lost patience and hung up. Actually, I’d been planning to end this relationship for a while now. Lily had paid me back $3000 in total. I knew full well who had really given her that money. But I didn’t care anymore. Whatever, money in my pocket was what mattered most. Good riddance to trashy men. Jack and I had been introduced by our parents. His dad and my dad were classmates. At a reunion, they discovered their kids were working in the same city and both single, so they exchanged our contact info. Jack and I got to know each other for a while before becoming a couple. He gave me the impression of a jade stone sealed in a box – plain and dull, occasionally glimmering. But after this incident, I saw clearly that the so-called “jade” was nothing but shards from a shattered beer bottle – ugly and stained. I know no one’s perfect. So I could accept Jack’s weak personality and indecisiveness. But I couldn’t accept how he completely stood by when I was being bullied. Even with evidence right in front of him, he didn’t say a single word in my defense. And I definitely couldn’t accept that deep down, he favored another woman. Call it stupidity or favoritism, I didn’t want to entrust myself to a man like that. After we broke up, Jack called me many times and sent lots of long messages. Just looking at them made my eyes hurt. I never responded and blocked him directly. One night I got a call from an unknown number. The person on the other end seemed drunk, slurring, “Lena, did you… hic… did you find some rich guy?” I was stunned for a moment, then laughed mockingly. “No, I just don’t like men who are too short. In any sense of the word.” Jack choked, then angrily hung up. He knew full well why we broke up, but admitting fault was too difficult. Shifting blame was so much easier. Recently I took on a new project at work. Our whole team was working around the clock, practically day and night. It wasn’t until half a month later that we finally wrapped things up. I stretched lazily in the office, feeling immensely relieved. Thinking of the year-end bonus made me break into a smile. Suddenly my phone buzzed. It was a photo from my friend Samantha. In an upscale restaurant, Jack and Lily were acting intimately, gazing at each other with eyes full of endless affection. “Lena, you were right to break up! That scumbag moved on without missing a beat! It’s so gross I can’t even eat!” To be honest, I felt completely calm. It was like watching random strangers on the street – not a ripple of emotion. I replied: “Whatever. You can’t hold onto someone who wants to leave. And those who stay won’t go anywhere.” I strolled down the street. The night wind surged fiercely yet tenderly, blowing away the last warmth of late summer. It also bid farewell to a relationship that was never meant to be mine. At least, that’s what I thought.
The project was completed beautifully. Our boss, understanding how hard the team had worked, gave us a few extra days off after we finished wrapping things up. I had been so exhausted that I was sound asleep at home when I was suddenly woken by loud knocking. I opened the door to find Jack. His eyes were rimmed with red, his expression dazed. He reeked of alcohol. Leaning against the doorframe, he looked down at me and smiled. “Lena, long time no see.” I eyed him warily. “What are you doing here?” But Jack didn’t answer. He tried to come inside, but he was so drunk he could barely stand. I kicked him out without hesitation. I slammed the door shut. Outside, Jack’s voice came through like a dog barking. He kept yelling for me to open the door, to see him, to give him another chance to start over. Drunk words, sober thoughts. A man who seemed so honest and steady on the surface was actually a fickle playboy at heart. I couldn’t help but feel grateful I’d gotten out of that mess in time. It was 11:30 PM. The neighbors were all asleep. Jack’s hoarse voice echoed in the hallway like an curse, shattering the night’s peace. I warned him, “If you don’t leave, I’m calling the police!” There was a moment of silence outside, then his dismissive voice: “Hah, I don’t believe you.” Fifteen minutes later, the police arrived. … When Lily came to pick Jack up, he was already half sober, hanging his head in silence. Lily glared at me with disgust. “Lena, are you some kind of ghost or succubus? Why are you still trying to seduce other people’s boyfriends?” I couldn’t help but laugh. “If your boyfriend hadn’t shown up drunk in the middle of the night begging me to take him back, forcing me to call the police, why would you be here picking him up from the station?” “You…!” Lily bit her lip hard, shooting a disappointed look at Jack before turning her anger back to me. “Keep dreaming! He just came to settle accounts after you scammed him out of so much money!” I froze. The police officer frowned. “Scammed?” Lily snatched Jack’s phone and pulled up records of all the money he’d spent on me over the past six months. Gifts for various holidays, meals he paid for, travel tickets, hotel bookings… all sorts of odds and ends. “Lena, since you’ve already broken up with Jack, shouldn’t you return everything you owe? Don’t take advantage of my boyfriend!” The police officer’s expression was hard to read. He glanced at me, his eyes conveying either sympathy for my situation or relief that I’d gotten out of it. I smiled bitterly and shook my head, immediately pulling up my own records of purchases – men’s belts, watches, wallets and more that I’d bought from high-end stores. “You’re right, we should settle accounts.” Just a quick comparison of the prices made it clear who owed who, without even needing a calculator. Lily was furious, especially when she realized the suit jacket and shoes Jack was wearing were ones I’d bought. Her face turned an ugly shade of purple. She took a breath, then sneered, “So you were the one throwing yourself at him.” Jack, that rotten piece of wood, finally spoke up. Looking at me, he nodded. “That’s right, she was.” I didn’t want to waste energy arguing. I also didn’t want to get involved in this mess anymore. I accepted the officer’s mediation, but before leaving, I asked for a copy of the police report. As I came out, the streetlights on both sides had gone dark. The night curtain was being pulled back, revealing the faint white of dawn. Lily had thrown Jack’s shoes and jacket in the trash. He stood by the road waiting for a ride in his socks and shirt, shivering from the cold. As I passed by them, I overheard Lily making a few sarcastic remarks, all aimed at me. Even though it was clearly the man who had shown up uninvited, she blamed me instead. I wasn’t sure if she was deluding herself or just blind to the situation. As for Jack, he neither refuted nor agreed, remaining silent with a complex expression. I quickly got in my car and left. Even looking at them for another second made me feel sick to my stomach. Besides the childhood bond, what Jack liked most about Lily was feeling adored and depended on. It gave him a sense of superiority he never got from me.
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