Chapter 3

Out of respect for his living habits, I never brought my clothes into Eric's room.

I marched over to Eric, holding up the silky pajamas. "Whose are these? Why did they end up in your closet?"

Eric looked a little flustered for a second, then gave me a light knock on the head.

He said, "What wild ideas are you coming up with now? I bought those for you. Took the tags off myself. They're clean, so you can wear them."

But I knew for a fact these pajamas already belonged to someone else.

Kelsie was always spritzing herself with perfume, and these pajamas were absolutely drenched in lavender scent.

I didn't confront Eric directly.

People's hearts grew cold little by little.

I turned to Eric and said, "I'm thinking about asking Kelsie to move out sooner than planned. How do you feel about that?"

Eric's gaze was deep, but I could see his feelings starting to surface.

He replied, "Weren't you the one who insisted on bringing her in? Don't look at me now."

I mumbled, "Isn't it because I'm worried you'll have a hard time letting her go?"

I added, "I swear, you seem to know her better than you know me."

Eric looked annoyed and raised his voice. "Alisa, can you stop being so unreasonable? You were the one who insisted on bringing Kelsie home. I told you I didn't agree, but you still got mad at me."

Back then, whenever I got upset, Eric would always be so patient with me, doing whatever he could to calm me down.

Now, after just a few words, he was already irritated, and I had become the one making trouble.

Eric pulled me close with one arm. "Who says I can't let her go? You're the only one I want."

Once Eric was asleep, I picked up my phone and saw a message from Georgia.

Georgia: [Got any proof yet?]

Georgia: [Who is that woman? Did you find out?]

Georgia: [Let's go give her a piece of our mind together!]

I rolled over and stared at my phone, looking at the chat history between Kelsie and me from our last business trip.

My best friend Kelsie was pouring her heart out to me.

Kelsie: [Ugh... Turns out my first love still has feelings for me. He messaged me again today.]

Kelsie: [Alisa, if I get back together with my first love, will you support me?]

I replied: [Of course I'll support you. I just want you to be happy.]

So what exactly was Kelsie's relationship with Eric now? A huge question mark spread in my heart.

I needed to figure it out. I took a deep breath and was getting ready to snoop through Eric's phone.

Just half an hour ago, Kelsie messaged Eric.

Kelsie: [Why aren't you coming? I've been waiting for you so long.]

Eric replied: [Just forget it. Alisa is home, so I'm not coming over tonight.]

Kelsie: [Don't you think it's exciting? She's so clueless, she'll never notice.]

When Eric Lucero didn't reply, Kelsie kept messaging him.

Kelsie: [Got you something. Bet you'll love it.]

Kelsie: [Just sneak over after she falls asleep. My door's open.]

Kelsie: [Eric, I can't sleep if you're not here.]

Kelsie: [?]

Kelsie: [Eric!]

Kelsie: [If you don't come over, I'm gonna ignore you…]

Staring at Eric sleeping so peacefully, I just felt sick to my stomach. I moved his arm away.

Just as I was about to put my phone down, Kelsie sent me a picture of her and Eric in their old school uniforms.

They were kissing on the grass in the photo, and she wrote: [Can you really give up on us after all these years?]

I couldn't stop my hand from shaking as I held my phone.

Getting betrayed by both my best friend and the guy I loved, it felt like my whole world just crashed down.

Just how many secrets were they keeping from me?

It turned out that Eric was the first love Kelsie had always hung on to.

At that moment, I just felt like a total fool. I'd fallen right into the trap she'd set for me.

Seeing Kelsie's bedroom door left slightly ajar, I couldn't help but remember how she came back from studying abroad, with that pitiful look on her face, saying she had nowhere to go and pleading for me to let her stay with me.

"I don't know anyone here, Alisa. You wouldn't really leave me all alone in a hotel, would you?" Kelsie said, giving me those puppy-dog eyes.

It was as if, if I didn't take her in, she'd be out on the streets.

Back then, Eric and I were already living together, and our relationship was going great.

Honestly, I felt a little awkward about it. I didn't want anyone crashing our little world.

I gently turned Kelsie down. "But... I've got a boyfriend now, and I'm worried it might be a bit awkward if you moved in with us."

I remembered the first time Eric met Kelsie. I brought him along to a restaurant.