Ten years of my life. I wasn't going to let them disappear without answers.
The moment my foot hit the floor, a sharp ache shot through it.
That foot had been broken once.
A year ago, a car swerved into me while I was out making deliveries.
At the time, Brendan had just been scammed out of his entire savings by a coworker and was buried in debt on top of it.
He'd cried when he told me. Apologized over and over. Even offered to break up so he wouldn't drag me down.
So I handed over every cent of my settlement money to dig him out.
All I kept for myself was the pain that never went away.
Looking back now.
It was all for nothing.
I couldn't let myself keep thinking. I got dressed and went downstairs.
The ground floor was ringed with barbecue stalls, loud with drinking games and shouting.
I pulled my jacket tight and walked fast.
When we first looked at this apartment, I didn't want it.
Too expensive, and the day we came to view it, a group of drunk men had blocked my path.
What had Brendan said?
"It's got character. Besides, I'm your knight in shining armor. I'll walk you home every day."
I'd believed those bright, earnest eyes.
But I felt bad making him do it, so I always slipped past those leering stares on my own.
"Well, well! Told you tonight was my lucky night! Got a pretty little thing throwing herself right at me!"
A man reeking of cigarettes and liquor grabbed me from behind.
Laughter erupted from every direction.
"Hahaha, looks like you hit the jackpot tonight, buddy!"
"Damn, I missed my chance."
"Don't be scared, sweetheart!"
"Let go of me!"
I thrashed against him with everything I had.
But my struggling only seemed to egg them on.
"Ooh, feisty one!"
"She's all yours, bro!"
The crowd clapped and hollered like it was a show.
Smoke, alcohol, malice. All of it closed in on me like blades.
The man's arms were locked around me, and no matter how hard I fought, his greasy face kept inching closer.
The crowd cheered louder, waiting for the spectacle.
Then the man screamed and lurched backward.
His hands clamped over the fleshy roll of his waist, blood seeping between his fingers.
My hand was shaking around the fruit knife, but my eyes swept across every single face in that circle.
Maybe it was the alcohol, but not one of them made a sound.
The only noise left was the man howling and cursing.
"C-come on, girl, no need for that. We were just messing around."
"Yeah, that was way too far."
I couldn't hear any of it.
I pushed through the crowd, gasping, walking faster and faster until there were no more lights, no more stench of liquor.
Tears had long since soaked my face.
I dropped the knife into a trash can with trembling hands, crouched on the ground, and cried.
When I had no tears left, I looked up and saw the high-rise looming right in front of me.
The most expensive luxury complex in the city. The property Brendan had been making payments on.
This was why he'd insisted on that apartment. So he could be close to this place.
Even if it meant leaving me in that environment.
Even though we'd been together since we were eighteen.
Even though he'd promised to marry me more times than I could count.
Lies.
All of it, lies.
Maybe he never loved me at all.
The delivery uniform I'd grabbed on my way out got me past the gate.
No elevator key card, so I took the stairs.
I climbed one step at a time, and a memory surfaced without warning.
I was sixteen the first time I met Brendan, and it was on a staircase just like this.
"Hey there. One more step and you'll be in my arms."
I'd snapped out of my daze and looked up, straight into Brendan's smiling eyes.
The sunlight caught them and turned them amber.
My face went red on the spot.
Over the next ten years, I watched my parents divorce and became the kid nobody wanted.
His family went bankrupt. He fell from the top of the world and nearly lost himself to depression.
