Chapter 2

2

I sat in the dark living room at home, losing all track of time.

My hand gripped the phone tightly as the video replayed over and over.

My body could not stop trembling.

Even after watching it dozens of times, the sting remained sharp and raw.

During those past few days, I had been working around the clock on a major project, pulling endless all-nighters.

Selene had specifically come to the lab to tell me she would lock up.

She told me to go home early to rest and promised she had prepared a sweet little surprise for me.

My heart had been overflowing with warmth back then.

I never imagined it was all just a cheap trick to get me out of the way.

It turned out my entire seven-year relationship was just a solo performance.

A deep bitterness washed over me, and my eyes burned with unshed tears.

Just as I was about to dial Selene's number to demand a face-to-face talk, her call flashed on my screen first.

She did not ask if I was okay after being unreachable all day.

She did not even ask about my sudden suspension from the department.

To her, none of that mattered.

Her familiar voice came through the speaker, filled with barely suppressed rage.

"What the hell are you doing? Why haven't you been answering your phone?"

"Nothing even happened! Rhett and I were just comforting each other as friends. Can you stop making a massive deal out of nothing? We barely even touched!"

"Do you have any idea what posting that video does to our academic reputation? You have crossed the line, Garrett!"

Her screeching voice was loud enough to pierce my eardrum.

She was genuinely furious.

Yet her fury was entirely for another man.

In all our years together, she had always treated me with cold detachment.

Now, for the sake of her long-lost flame, she was losing her mind.

I stared at the video on my screen, watching her blush and moan softly into Rhett's embrace.

I deliberately put the phone on speaker, letting the audio of her breathless sighs play back to her.

It was far from the "barely touched" she claimed.

The line went dead silent.

After a long pause, I finally spoke in a voice devoid of emotion.

"Selene, you really are pathetic."

"Garrett Mercer! Say that again!"

Her voice climbed an octave, filled with disbelief and venom.

"I just asked you to help Rhett out, so what is your problem? When you chased me back in college, you swore you would love and protect me no matter what I did. Now you are calling me names? Why don't you just go drop dead!"

Her words grew sharper and more venomous with every breath.

I sat silently in the shadows, the only faint glow coming from the cigarette between my fingers.

The flickering ash reflected in my dead, hollow eyes.

Selene had never spoken to me like this before.

Even during our worst arguments, she had always maintained a calm, aloof composure.

Now, she was cursing me to die.

It felt like I was meeting a complete stranger for the very first time.