Chapter 3

3.

I glanced at the screen and saw the notification: Skylar calling.

His phone was set to a special vibration pattern―three quick buzzes, a pause, then three more. It wasn't the normal ringtone rhythm.

Liam frantically declined the call, a flicker of embarrassment on his face. "I… must have set that by accident."

As soon as he said it, the phone rang again.

Liam hurried out to the balcony to answer it. Even though he lowered his voice, I could still hear him clearly.

"The power's out? Did you call the landlord? Don't worry, I'll come over and check on you."

He hung up and walked back into the living room, looking hesitant.

"Chloe, something urgent came up at work. I have to go out for a bit."

Even now, he couldn't be bothered to come up with a better excuse.

I asked, "Do you have to go?"

"I don't know when I'll be back. You should get some sleep."

With that, he rushed out the door.

Since I arrived, he hadn't asked me how long my drive was or if I was tired. He never asked why I had suddenly shown up. Every conversation we had revolved around Skylar.

Outside, the entire street was decked out in Christmas lights. White candles flickered on every porch, and the sound of laughter echoed from all around. Christmas Eve was supposed to be the warmest night of the year.

I walked into the kitchen and scraped the entire feast into the trash can.

Then I grabbed my suitcase and walked out the door.

I found a hotel nearby. From my window, the city skyline glittered.

Like I was punishing myself, I opened that Reddit thread again. Skylar had deleted most of her comments, leaving only the very first one.

I clicked on her profile. Fifteen minutes ago, she had made her first public post on Instagram.

"Spending Christmas Eve with my favorite person ??"

Below were nine pictures. Five were of Liam's back or side profile in different settings. The last one was an intimate selfie of the two of them.

About half an hour later, Liam called.

"Chloe, I'm probably going to be really late. You should get some rest."

In the background, I could faintly hear Skylar's voice.

"I'm sorry, Chloe. I'll make it up to you on Christmas, I promise."

The call ended.

I opened my phone and booked the earliest flight back home for the next morning. Then I went into my settings and found the number that had a special ringtone for three years.

Block.

Delete.

Next, I opened my photo gallery and found every picture of me and Liam. One by one, I deleted them all.

Including the one I had always used as my lock screen―the one from our college graduation, where he was down on one knee, holding a bouquet of flowers.

I hit "Permanently Delete."

Then I typed out a text message to Liam.

"Liam, we're over."