I cried so hard I could barely breathe. Then I went to my bedroom and slammed the door hard.
An hour later, Garry knocked on my door.
When I opened the door, he sighed, pulled me into his arms, and gently stroked my face.
"I didn’t mean to upset you earlier," he said." It’s just inconvenient for Caro to be alone at home. I know you’re jealous, but there’s really nothing between us. Don’t cry, okay?"
I stayed silent, but he kissed me.
He pried my lips apart. His tongue entangled with mine. He kissed me passionately yet gently.
At that very moment, he made me feel as if he still loved me and only me.
As the kiss deepened, my anger melted away.
That night, when I wanted to sleep, Caroline moved to my bedroom because, according to her, she was too scared to sleep alone.
She walked into my room with a smug look on her face. However, when she saw my slightly swollen lips, her expression turned gloomy.
Her steps, however, were as steady as ever, with no sign of the pain she said she had.
I didn’t have the energy to argue. I just hoped she would leave as soon as possible.
The next morning, I woke up to find Caroline sitting on the small sofa in my room. In her hand, there was a framed photo of me and Garry.
"What are you doing?!" I shouted.
She did not answer my question. She just smiled as she stared at the picture of Garry kissing me. Then she let the frame go.
It crashed to the floor and shattered. The photo inside was deliberately crumpled.
I shot out of bed to grab it because that picture was one of the few pictures that I had with Garry.
When I was young, Garry loved taking pictures with me, but when he grew up, he ceased to do it. He said he was a boy and didn't want to take pictures. Even this one was taken secretly by me.
Later, I saw countless photos of him with Caroline on her Instagram with different angles and various sceneries.
It was at that moment I realized he did not hate taking pictures but he just didn’t want to take them with me.
Before I could reach her, Caroline suddenly collapsed to the floor, and her barely healed wound started to bleed again.
At this very moment, my brother, Garry, walked in.
I stared blankly at Caroline as she lay on the floor writhing in pain, even before I had a chance to lay my hands on her.
Before Garry could say anything, I laughed coldly. Then I lowered my hand and stood still with my hand folded. "I did not do anything."
Ignoring me, Garry rushed over to help Caroline.
"Ellen!" he yelled.
Caroline stayed on the floor for a long time as she clung tightly to Garry's embrace. Her body trembled as she spoke, "It wasn't Ellen's fault … really, it wasn't her."
After she said that, she feigned to look at me before turning her head swiftly. Then with gritted teeth, she said, "I ... I accidentally fell. I also accidentally dropped the photo. I didn’t mean to break the picture of you and Ellen ... I just ...."
Garry stood up and slapped me hard.
Slap!
It rang loud and clear.
My head snapped to the side, my hair disheveled, and tears started to fall uncontrollably.
I raised my shaking hand to touch my cheek. I could not believe Garry had actually slapped me.
However, Garry pretended not to see my tears. He helped Caroline up and hugged her tightly.
He looked fiercely at me, "Ellen! How many times are you going to hurt Caroline before you are satisfied? I should’ve known better than to trust you would behave last night!"
I turned my head and stared fiercely at him. Half of my face was red and swollen. I spoke with a steady and biting tone, "If the frame accidentally broke, how come the photo inside it accidently crumpled?"
Garry went silent for a while as if he also realized there was some inconsistency in her story.
However, Caroline let out a sudden cry of pain, and Garry immediately crouched to check on her.
He used to worry about me like this. Even a mosquito bite would make him fuss over me for half a day.
However, now, he could slap me in the face and tend to someone who deliberately hurt me, right in front of me.
