ALYSSA'S POV
“Are you okay, Alyssa?”
The sound of Ethan’s voice was like a low hum of electricity through the receiver. It was steady, grounding, and devoid of the sharp edges Nick always used to cut me down.
Even back in our university days, no matter how many times I had brushed him off or treated his affection like an inconvenience, Ethan Vance had always cared about the state of my soul.
I took a shaky breath, looking at the grey sky through the bureau windows.
“I’m okay. I got divorced today, Ethan…for the tenth time and I’ve decided to finally let go.”
A long, heavy silence stretched between us.
“I’m coming to pick you up,” he said finally. “Stay where you are. I’ll be there shortly.”
“Wait…not today,” I whispered, closing my eyes. I felt hollow, like a house that had been gutted by fire.
“I have some unfinished business to handle. Can you pick me up in three days instead?.”
I could hear his hesitation, the protective instinct warring with his respect for my boundaries. Eventually, I heard a soft sigh.
“Three days. Don’t make me wait a second longer.”
I hung up before my resolve could waver.
Suddenly, the skies thundered and rain started pouring down fast, as if to mock me.
I managed to borrow a spare umbrella from the sympathetic clerk at the desk and hailed a taxi.
Every mile back to the house felt like a countdown to a confrontation I no longer feared, but still dreaded.
When I reached the front door, I rang the bell.
The door swung open, and there stood Lily. She was wearing one of Nick’s oversized shirts, a smug, feline smirk dancing on her lips as she looked me up and down.
“Well, if it isn’t the pathetic doll,” she cooed, leaning against the doorframe.
“Back already? I thought you’d at least have the self-respect to stay away for a few hours. You really are shameless.”
I ignored her, closing the wet umbrella and stepping past her into the house.
“I’m talking to you!” she growled, her voice losing its sweetness. “Nick clearly doesn’t love you, he clearly doesn't want you here. So why can’t you just give us breathing space? He loves me! Only me!”
I almost scoffed.
Looking at her, I felt a strange flicker of pity. She was so delusional, so proud of being the first love, completely unaware that she was just a pawn in Nick’s sick game of psychological cat-and-mouse. She didn't realize he only loved her to keep me running.
I started toward the stairs, my wet shoes clicking on the marble, when a hand suddenly clamped onto my arm. I was flung aside with such force that I stumbled into the wall.
“Didn’t you hear her?” Nick’s voice boomed.
He was standing there, his face a mask of fury. He stepped closer to Lily, wrapping a protective arm around her waist as if I were some monster threatening his peace.
“Lily was talking to you, Alyssa. Since when did you become so arrogant that you don't even acknowledge her?”
I stared at him, my heart feeling like a lead weight in my chest.
What am I supposed to say?
Thank you, Lily, for reminding me how much of a fool I was for loving a ghost?
“Apologize to her,” Nick yelled. “This instant!”
“For what?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper. “For walking into my own home?”
“For being a disrespectful bitch!” Nick snarled.
I looked at Lily, who was now pouting, playing the victim with ease.
This was my life.
I was the obedient dog, and she was the prize.
I almost let out a scoff, I just wanted to get to my room and pack. If saying sorry would end the noise, I’d say it.
“I’m sorry, Lily,” I said tonelessly.
“I can’t hear her, Nick,” Lily whined, clutching his arm tighter. “And she’s glaring at me. She looks like she wants to kill me just because you love me.”
Nick’s eyes turned a shade of black as hate radiated off him in waves.
“Lower your gaze, Alyssa!”
"I want you to get down on your knees and kowtow to her and show some real sincerity.”
My chest constricted, a sob threatening to burst through my throat, but I bit my lip until I tasted copper as I looked him dead in the eye.
Normally, I'd be on my knees begging for forgiveness like a puppy.
“No,” I said sternly.
Nick looked stunned for a heartbeat and then his rage doubled.
“You’ve got guts lately. Do you think because we signed those papers this morning, the rules have changed?"
“It hasn’t even been five hours and you crawled back here because you have nowhere else to go. You’re pathetic.”
Tears stung my eyes. He knew the law—the divorce decree required a cool-off period of a few days in the same residence to see if things could be mended. He knew I had to be here, yet he used my presence to bruise me.
“Nick, stop,” Lily said, her voice dripping with fake concern. “She probably hates me because she knows she can never have your heart. It's fine, I can handle her jealousy.”
Nick’s fist tightened. “You dare hate her? After everything she’s been through because of you? I’m going to teach you how to behave.”
Before I could move, he lunged. He grabbed my arm, his fingers digging into my skin like talons, and dragged me toward the front door.
He threw it open, the sound of the rain roaring into the house. With one violent shove, he sent me sprawling out onto the porch.
“Stay out there,” he hissed, pointing a finger at me. “Stay in the rain until you learn how to respect Lily.”
The door slammed shut.
I crumbled onto the cold, wet ground.
The rain was freezing, soaking through my clothes in seconds, making my body shake uncontrollably.
The street was silent except for the rhythmic drumming of the storm.
I crawled toward a corner of the porch, huddling into a ball as my vision began to swim.
He said he loved me in that letter. He said he’d die for me.
If this was his love, it was a slow execution.
My body felt numb, my mind slipping into a dark, foggy void.
Even as my consciousness began to fade, my heart—that traitorous, stubborn muscle—kept beating for him, even through the agony.
My head hit the stone floor, and the sound of the rain was the last thing I heard before everything went black.
