I’d imagined running into Ethan. We had mutual
friends, our families were both in LA. We were
bound to cross paths eventually. I’d pictured a
polite nod, maybe a brief, awkward
conversation. Or perhaps he would simply
ignore me.
I never imagined seeing him like this.
Disheveled, his shirt wrinkled, no tie, his eyes
<
bloodshot with fatigue. I was leaving a
restaurant with Liam, feeling happy and refreshed after a good night’s sleep. I was
wearing a new pale pink cashmere dress, my
makeup perfect. I felt like a ripe, juicy peach.
We stepped out into the sunshine, and there he
was, getting out of his car.
I froze. Liam’s warm hand tightened around
mine.
Ethan looked surprisingly calm. He said my
name, his voice gentle, like it used to be when
we were first together. “Chloe.”
I stood there, frozen, the music from a nearby
fountain a cheerful counterpoint to the heavy
feeling in my chest. Liam, sensing my unease,
pulled me slightly behind him.
Perhaps it was Ethan’s unexpected
vulnerability, the stark contrast to his usual
<
arrogance, that stirred something within me. A
flicker of sadness for the Chloe who’d
overheard his cruel words, the Chloe who’d
been so carelessly discarded, the Chloe who’d loved him so fiercely for seven years, only to let
go in seven days.
“Chloe, I’m here to take you back to LA.” He
hadn’t even glanced at Liam. His eyes were fixed on me, filled with a tenderness I hadn’t
seen in years. I couldn’t remember the last time
he’d looked at me like that.
He stopped a few feet away. “Chloe, let’s go
home. Let’s get married. Let’s start over.
Please?”
His voice was so earnest, so sincere, that for a
moment, I almost believed him. I almost
believed that the Ethan who’d coldly dismissed
me, who’d wanted to give another girl a “proper
title,” had never existed.
<
But it was too late. A broken heart couldn’t be
mended so easily. And the new heart that had
grown in its place already belonged to someone else.
I shook my head. “Ethan, just go.”
“Chloe, I never touched Ashley. I broke up with her after three days. I had the wedding dress repaired. I still have our rings. Chloe, I had an engagement ring made. I’m serious…” His eyes vere getting red, his voice trembling. He held out a small, velvet box, his gaze full of hope and vulnerability.
Seeing him like this, I couldn’t deny the twinge
of pain in my chest. But that was all it was: a
twinge.
“Ethan, I have a boyfriend.” I took Liam’s hand
and stepped beside him.
The blood drained from Ethan’s face. His gaze
slowly drifted downwardo
cottling on
12:10
<
slowly drifted downwards, settling on our
intertwined hands. We were both wearing rings,
just like we used to.
“Chloe, are you serious?”
I took a deep breath, looked at Liam, and
nodded firmly. “Yes. I’m serious.”
Ethan let out a low, bitter laugh. “You think he’s
serious? You think he cares? Two years ago, he
fought me tooth and nail over a business deal.
Now he’s pursuing you? Chloe, don’t be naive.
Don’t you think there’s something else going on
here? A little game of one–upmanship? Can he
honestly say he’s pursuing you without a single
thought of getting back at me? Chloe, you’re
still so gullible. They’re all the same. You were
with me for seven years. We have a history. Do
you think Liam doesn’t care about that? You
think this will end any differently? You’re not
afraid of ending up with another seven wasted
years?”
>
76
The cheerful music stopped. So did Ethan’s
voice. For a moment, there was silence,
followed by a faint cracking sound. And then…
relief. The last vestiges of my lingering sadness
were gone.
