The atmosphere became lively again. I leaned against Zayne, my mind racing, trying to figure out how to break up with him.
Just then, the door to the private room swung open, and Yasmin Lambert walked in, dressed in a flowing white dress. "Zayne?"
In an instant, everyone shoved the women off their laps and hurriedly adjusted their clothes.
Zayne was no exception. He pushed me aside, rose from his seat, and hurried over to Yasmin. He gently covered her eyes. "Yasmin, sweetheart, wait just a second while we clean up."
Then, he shot a warning look at the others. "Well? Hurry up and get these people out of here! We can't have Yasmin seeing this mess."
Everyone jumped into action. Some rushed to open the windows while others ushered the women out. One of them even flipped on the bright overhead lights, lighting up the entire room.
It was too bright for a place like this, but it did nothing to chase away the darkness in my heart.
So, this was what Zayne was like when he truly cared about someone.
I suddenly lost all desire to stay. I rose from the couch and got ready to leave.
My movement caught everyone off guard. One of the guys hurriedly reminded Zayne, saying, "Zayne, Emilia's still here."
Zayne frowned and instinctively said, "So what? It's not like—" He seemed to realize what he'd said and reluctantly lowered his hand that was covering Yasmin's eyes. Then, he tried to cover his tracks and explained, "Yasmin's still young. She's not used to this sort of thing. She's not like you."
I smiled, but it was hollow.
He had forgotten that Yasmin was actually a year older than me. But since I wasn't someone who mattered to him, he didn't care about how I felt.
I tried to walk around them to the exit, but Yasmin abruptly stopped me and sweetly said, "Please don't be upset, Emilia. I'm just here to return something." As soon as her words fell, she opened a small jewelry box to reveal a massive diamond ring.
"When I saw the ring on your finger last time, I couldn't help but envy you and said that I wanted one too. I didn't think…" Yasmin looked at Zayne shyly and chirped, "I didn't think Zayne would actually remember and get me such an extravagant diamond ring. I heard it's the kind that can only be custom-made once in a lifetime. I felt bad about it, so I came to return it to you, Emilia."
Even though she claimed she was returning it, her hand remained firmly wrapped around the box. It was as if she couldn't bring herself to let it go.
I looked down at the plain silver band on my finger, and a bitter laugh bubbled up inside me.
We'd been together for two years—730 days to be exact—and all Zayne had ever given me was a simple silver ring that was barely worth 200 dollars. Whether in bed or out, I'd always been the bargain option.
I took a few steps back and did something I had never done before—I didn't care about Zayne's pride. I pushed open the door and walked out.
The atmosphere in the room immediately shifted.
"Who does she think she is, walking out on Zayne like that?" someone loudly snickered.
"Zip it!" Zayne snapped, glaring at the guy with a dark and stormy expression.
